TECH TALK: BILL MAGEE says the next wave of technology presents some old problems
For some it’s innocent online fun that passes a few hours. Tethered to augmented reality (AR) glasses and virtual reality (VR) headsets, interacting in a 3D social/entertainment digital playground that usually means frantically waving one’s arms about.
To the more commercially aware, the futuristic immersive technology, labelled the “Metaverse Economy”, is expected to morph into a big money “successor state” to the entire internet as we know it, and within a few years.
Fintech and cyber risk expert Neira Jones quotes Citi bank’s expectations that the phenomenon will surpass £10 trillion by 2030, dwarfing other global mainstream tech activity.
Big Tech is fast preparing for such a financial bonanza. Facebook has even changed its parent name to “Meta” to steal a march on competitors.
However, businesses flirting with the nascent metaverse have been abruptly hauled back into the real world following warnings of privacy and security risks.
Manhattan Tech Support (MTS) research reveals that 91.5% of security experts warn of commercial uncertainties about the the protection of sensitive data in the metaverse.
The survey goes further, pointing to 98.1% worried about it being combined with technologies such as AI-generated audio, visuals and deep fakes.
MTS marketing executive Rahul Kumar claims the metaverse introduces an entirely new vector for attacks which, until now, hadn’t been considered.
“Introducing VR and AR into workspaces and homes increases security risks like identity theft and ransomware,” he says.
“These are made all the more serious because the metaverse exists in the cloud which can be challenging to protect.”
Michael Schenck, senior cybersecurity consultant at Cyzen adds that while the benefits of the tech and public intentions appear good: “It’s just more ways for tech to harvest information.
“With all that data mining the concept of privacy disappears entirely.”
The Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum, a regulatory body established by Ofcom and the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), brought together venture capitalists, analysts and academics.
An outcome of the symposium is a vision of a decentralised metaverse replacing “corporatisation” of the current web that has become over-reliant on tech like cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens (NFTs).
The DRCF says privacy and safety remain commercial, consumer and societal issues. Its impact requires careful handling when it comes to online harm and moderating real-time content, as well as safeguarding proprietary rights, payments and consumer protection.
Businesses are urged to counter such risks by ensuring they are working in secure cloud and hybrid cloud environments, especially with increasing numbers of employees working remotely, and not to hesitate in seeking outside IT expertise.
Michelle Hawkins, managing director for Accenture Scotland, describes the metaverse as an opportunity to view the internet differently, not as a disparate collection of sites and apps, rather as a “persistent 3D environment” where moving from work to a social platform is as simple as crossing the street.
But she also issues a security warning to guard against “bad actors” ranging from deep fakes to bots. It ignites a growing concern that requires an obligation to build a responsible metaverse.
“The actions and choices organisations make today will set the (metaverse) stage for the future…it is business critical to act now,” she says.
Only then will metaverse concerns covering trust, sustainability, personal safety and privacy have a chance of being addressed.
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