Metaverses Should Be Policed, UAE Minister Believes

The topic of crypto and everything related to it took all the attention during the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Many issues were addressed concerning the future of the cryptocurrencies themselves and their regulation within the monetary systems of participating countries, as well as all digital assets and objects in general.

Unexpected twist

However, the UAE’s Ministry of State for artificial intelligence has turned an even sharper corner and brought up the topic of regulating Metaverses – more specifically, the regulation of social behavior within them.

According to Omar Sultan Al Olama, the realism of Metaverses, which can potentially be brought to life, opens the door for people with impure intentions to terrorize others in ways that are not currently possible. The minister’s main argument was that a user of the Metaverse, especially if it is incredibly realistic, could experience serious psychological turmoil as a result of the crimes that could be applied to his digital self, and this would permanently corrupt his psyche in the real world.

Al Olama believes that there should be international security standards for Metaverses that should apply regardless of the location of the user. In his opinion, since similar measures are already in place on the Internet, Metaverses should not be an exception, and activities there, especially illegal ones, should be under the control of authorized supervisory bodies. In this matter, he appealed directly to the International Telecommunication Union, the specialized agency for information and communication technologies established by the United Nations.

Chris Cox, chief product officer at Meta, also spoke in support of the UAE minister’s speech. He assured that when it comes to Metaverses, international regulation of activities within them is really necessary. The solution, according to the Meta representative, could lie in a rating system that would distinguish between content for adults and children.