Be cautious in virtual worlds

The European Commission will be monitoring how virtual worlds develop to make sure current regulations keep protecting people in the EU in virtual worlds in the same way as they are protected in the physical world.

Furthermore, the European Commission and the EU Member States are working together, drawing from the lessons of the current internet, to safeguard a democratic society, for example in terms of rights of the child, protection of personal data and privacy, disinformation, cybersecurity, cybercrime, (gender-based) cyber violence, discrimination, exclusion and hate speech, as well as consumer protection and safety. 

Individual people can also do a lot to avoid the worst pitfalls. In the real world, you would be very careful when confronted with something unknown, or when interacting with strangers. You teach your children to do the same from an early age. In virtual worlds you need to be careful with what you share, with whom you share with and how much trust you give to a digital character. You may find yourself in a situation where you are on the receiving end of the bullying or bad behaviour of other people behind an avatar. You may also come across deep fakes and avatars impersonating a person you know or is familiar with.

Avatars that you meet in virtual worlds may not be controlled by a person in the European Union (EU), and pursuing someone by legal means, such as criminal activity or abuse of your avatar, could prove very difficult if they are based in a totally different continent though criminal activity should always be reported to the police.

If you feel uncomfortable at any stage during your journey into virtual worlds, take off your headsets if you are using them and disconnect immediately. Contact the provider of the application and report bad behaviour and bullying. If you think something criminal has taken place, such as fraud or hacking, you need to contact the police in your country (in the EU the emergency number is 112, but there are also national numbers that go directly to the police). 

Virtual worlds will become more and more realistic, and it is easy to be fooled by scammers and fraudsters even today just using your mobile phone. We tend to offer a lot of information about ourselves online and in a realistic setting of virtual worlds a fellow avatar may seem very sympathetic and real, so real that you may mistake them for a family member or a friend. However, don’t give away your personal details (your address, full name, social security or identity number, age, etc.) to another avatar and never give them your payment or credit card details. In virtual worlds you have the same rules as for the current internet, but in virtual worlds you have no way of telling if an avatar really is the who they say they are. 

So, if something doesn’t seem right, or too good to be true, it usually isn’t. Before sending money or parting with private data and pictures or meet in unfamiliar places verify that the information this avatar provides is correct. Use alternative channels to confirm with friends and family such as calling them on the phone on the usual number that you use to contact this person (not a new number given by the avatar) or ask them directly person to person. This is also true if the avatar claims to be your bank manager, the police, tax office or other government authority, as they would not contact you directly in virtual worlds. So, if you are uncertain, please call the person on their usual number before divulging your personal data. And it is important to know that the bank will never ask for your login details or password.

Do read the terms and conditions for the platform or game that you are registering with. Some ask for access to your contacts, but some go even further and ask to have access to everything you have on your mobile phone or tablet, including your bank accounts. The EU data protection regulation helps, but many platforms refuse access unless you accept the terms and conditions, but are you really prepared to give all that information away?

Be careful when you buy digital services and products (i.e., virtual art, avatar wearables, crypto currencies, etc). There are a lot of scammers and counterfeiters on today’s internet and virtual worlds will not be different in this aspect.

Finally, users should always keep in mind that frequent breaks are very important, both for children and adults. Children and teens should never be alone with XR devices and should never be allowed to play for a long period of time. Their eyesight continues to develop until adulthood and it is not fully known whether long exposure to virtual environments may damage it. 

This is not one complete guide to how to act in virtual worlds. The above are only some examples of what to look out for and how to behave.