Metaverse privacy issues include questions about data management and storage that we should examine before deciding whether the metaverse is a good idea or not.
When Facebook first announced that it was changing its name to Meta, most people considered the change to be just a desperate attempt to distract people from the multiple problems associated with the technology juggernaut. However, Mark Zuckerberg himself explained that this was more than just a publicity stunt – it was about the company's desire to align itself with the future of the Internet.
What does this future look like? According to Zuckerberg (and many other enthusiasts out there), the Internet will eventually become a metaverse. But as we discuss here at The Daily Bundle, this “ embedded internet ” (as Zuckerberg says) has many challenges ranging from technical implementation to government buy-in.
However, the most problematic issue for Facebook/Meta and any other major players investing in the development of the metaverse is privacy. Why? Well, considering the various privacy issues surrounding most tech companies pursuing the metaverse, it's natural for people to take a sideways glance at the metaverse.
But the metaverse's privacy concerns go beyond the thorny history of the companies that support it. The idea itself has some dubious aspects about data management and storage that we should examine before deciding whether the metaverse is a good idea or not.
A myriad of questions
In a recent interview with the Associated Press , Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen said the metaverse “will rob people of even more personal information while giving the embattled company another online monopoly.” And while there is some truth to what Haugen is saying, the reality seems more complex than that.
Although Facebook/Meta is, without a doubt, one of the biggest proponents of the metaverse, the reality is that multiple companies and organizations are already eyeing the idea of contributing to the development of this alternative digital world. In other words, Meta may be a big player, but it won't be the only one.
Facebook itself addressed Haugen's thoughts by saying that the company will build the metaverse “responsibly” and “it will not be built overnight by a single company.” The underlying idea is to collaborate with experts, industry partners and policymakers to ensure the metaverse is the best possible version of this crazy idea.
Does this put an end to the worries? Certainly not. On the contrary! A declaration of intent does not erase the fact that the metaverse needs coordinated actions from multiple stakeholders, rigorous oversight, and a vast network of devices working together to power everything. Implementation is key here and we are certainly in the dark when it comes to most of the details on this.
This naturally encourages a myriad of questions that do the metaverse (and Facebook) no favors. How much data will the metaverse need to deliver its hyper-personalized experience? How many devices will a user need to install in their homes to access it? Who will own the infrastructure on which the metaverse will run? What kind of privacy protection will it include? How will impartial organizations hold for-profit organizations accountable for their actions in the metaverse?
The questions are too many to list.
The seemingly impossible goal
Facebook/Meta promises that it will do whatever it takes to “minimize the amount of data used” in the metaverse. The company also states that it will “create technology to enable privacy-protected data use and give people transparency and control over their data.” That seems like the reasonable thing to say, given how long Facebook has spent in the hot seat taking heat over privacy issues.
However, there are some problematic things about this. Firstly, if the metaverse is an expansion of our current Internet, it seems quite impossible to reduce the amount of data required for the platform to function. The reason is simple: the metaverse promises a highly personalized experience that can only be built based on each user's information. Without this data, companies can only offer generic experiences.
This is not everything. Facebook is pushing for the metaverse to be the hub for just about everything, from gaming to meeting friends to commuting. How can they offer all this without storing user information? After all, any exchange that takes place within any platform is based on the exchange of data. How can we be sure that the things we do in the metaverse are not “stored anonymously” for “platform improvement purposes”?
Even if Meta achieves the seemingly impossible goal of offering a rich virtual experience with virtually no data collection, the Metaverse is intended to be an aggregation of efforts. What stops other companies from collecting data without being transparent?
I would like to be optimistic about this and believe that legislators can actually institute regulations that can prevent abuse. But we already have laws and regulations in place today and yet many companies still violate them. If we are serious about the metaverse, this is another front we have to cover.
And that's not to mention the infrastructure itself. For the metaverse to work, it would need a vast combination of servers, wearable devices and sensors installed inside and outside the site. This makes for a huge attack surface that hackers would love to target – and certainly will. What stops them from trying the same type of attack they target IoT devices, but in the metaverse?
Security is also a crucial issue here. Only strong and proactive systems can ensure that all existing data in the metaverse is protected from prying eyes. Unfortunately, there is no single perfect system, which means the metaverse needs to take an aggressive approach to cybersecurity if it wants to gain critical mass.
We need more exploration
If you've read this far, you might be wondering why I'm being so adamant about the metaverse. Well, you shouldn't get me wrong, the metaverse is one of those things that seems like it could radically change everything for the better (just like the internet seemed like when it was starting to emerge to the general public in the 90s). However, I'm trying to be realistic here.
We need to do a lot of work before the metaverse truly becomes a viable option. There are many fronts to worry about, but as we are already discussing the possibility of the metaverse as the future of the internet, we need to start thinking about them right now. Although we could argue which of these fronts is the most urgent, I think the modern panorama has shown us that we all need to feel safe and protected against attacks and intrusions.
This is why I may seem like a harsh metaverse hater (which I certainly am not!). As unpleasant as it may sound, exploring further the issues that can arise with the metaverse is the only way we can ensure that the metaverse doesn't end up being a privacy nightmare. This does not necessarily mean that we have to distrust everything. But given our collective history with social media, it would be a good idea to foster the necessary discussions that establish a clear path forward before we all strap on our VR helmets and leap into the future.
Source: BairesDev
