The metaverse will need rules to govern security, interactions among users, tax collection, data governance, regulatory compliance and more. These rules are not yet settled, but already, metaverse platforms are posing new governance and security challenges. A new, less centralised digital world will likely offer new attack surfaces for malicious actors, including on connected devices such as wearables. Three-dimensional experiences could make some cyberattacks deeply traumatic. New kinds of metaverse-specific crimes are also emerging, such as ’pump and dump’ NFTs and other fraudulent metaverse investments involving project-specific crypto tokens.
Organisations should have a vested interest not just in their own security, but also in their users’ security within the virtual space offered. Consider security and safety at the services level, so that security can be maintained no matter where your asset goes. If your customers are entrusting you with financial assets, you may need both special protocols to protect them and procedures to make them whole if they suffer financial crime within your virtual spaces.
Reassess vendors and partners. Your platform providers and cybersecurity firms may not have updated their security playbook for the metaverse. Consider also engaging with regulators to help shape the metaverse rules that are coming. Get up to speed on decentralised autonomous organisations (DAOs) — built on voluntarily agreed-upon rules enforced by a computer program that runs on a blockchain — which will likely play a growing role in metaverse governance. Throughout these efforts, communicate continuously and transparently with your stakeholders on progress, limitations and new risks.
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