Interpol Secretary General Jurgen Stock has announced that Interpol is investigating how it might police crime in the metaverse.
Let’s remember that the metaverse will allow people, represented by 3D avatars, to interact in different environments, so all kinds of crimes will be committed, without a doubt.
Now Interpol has built its own virtual reality space, where users can do training and attend virtual meetings. Stock said it’s important the agency isn’t left behind.
Criminals are sophisticated and professional in quickly adapting to any new technological tools that become available to commit crimes. We need to respond fast enough to that. Sometimes legislators, the police and our societies are a little behind.
The environment, which can only be accessed through secure servers, allows cops to experience what the metaverse might be like, giving them a feel for crimes that might occur and how they might be policed. However, there are difficulties with the definition of a crime in the metaverse.
Dr. Madan Oberoi, Interpol’s executive director of technology and innovation, said:
There are crimes that I don’t know if they can still be called crimes. For example, cases of sexual harassment have been reported. If you look at the definitions of these crimes in physical space and try to apply them in the metaverse, there’s a catch. We don’t know if we can call them crimes or not, but those threats are definitely there, so those issues have not been resolved yet.
In terms of regulation, Nina Jane Patel, Kabuni’s co-founder and director of metaverse research, said that what is illegal and harmful in the physical world should also be illegal in the virtual world.
Confusing times are coming, but the police must be prepared or they will lose their usefulness in certain sectors.