Cyber Security and Metaverse

A month ago I was listening to a podcast where they used the term 'Metaverse'. Although I have listened to this term many times, often I ignored it.

So, I have decided to give it a try to understand what metaverse is and what are the security implications when it is implemented.

What is the Metaverse?

The term Metaverse denotes the parallel universe where people have a virtual identity by combining the technology of virtual and augmented reality. The metaverse is similar to a parallel universe where an individual can do any task virtually. In the metaverse, people can buy land, enjoy shopping, partying, etc.

Although the metaverse concept is not new, the pandemic pushed us to think more and gear up the implementation of a Metaverse at full pace.

Security concerns related to the Metaverse

As new technology always comes up with new concerns and problems, the metaverse is not different. As this technology promises a new future in multiple dimensions, many security concerns are there before the implementation of the metaverse.

(1) Identity of individual

Although virtual identity is the key identity in the metaverse, the mechanism of proving identity is very important. Still, it is unclear how spoofing can be prevented in the metaverse. Also, there is a concept of Avatar in the metaverse, similar to the physical body of an individual in the physical world. A lot of security concerns are there about how Avatar protects identity in the metaverse.

(2) Laws and regulations

Still, no clear picture is available related to crimes that happened in the metaverse. Is there are courts available in Metaverse to deal with it? There is no clear picture available to deal with law-related aspects in the metaverse.

(3) Protection from Malware

Currently, there is no security framework available to protect the metaverse from malware. As this technology is new, more and more security standards should be evolved to protect the metaverse from malware.

(4) Data protection

No clear guidelines are available to protect data in the metaverse. If bad people theft sensitive and personal information, the whole concept of the metaverse will be disturbed.

(5) Theft of Intellectual Property (IP)

The protection of Intellectual Property (IP) is critical and its security is extremely important in the metaverse. As it is still difficult to protect IP in the physical world, it will be even harder to secure it in the metaverse.

(6) Threat related to its technology

There are security concerns specific to the metaverse and the technologies such as blockchain, cryptocurrencies, and NFTs. Here, NFT stands for Non-fungible token. NFT is a way of having ownership of digital art in the form of music, song, image, animation, etc.

Conclusion

Every new technology comes with security risks associated with it, the same is true for this technology. Currently, a lot of investment is happening in this domain and all are hoping that cyberspace will be safe and secure before any big move in the same direction.