The safety of virtual reality space is again questioned as a 21-year-old researcher The avatar was raped in the Metaverse.
Last week, SumOfUs published a report titled “”Metaverse: Another cesspool of toxic content‘Includes details of the violent encounters of researchers at Meta’s Horizon World.
The incident reportedly occurred while researchers were investigating user behavior on the platform. Within an hour of her wearing the Oculus virtual reality headset, she says her avatar was raped in virtual space.
Researchers were reportedly invited to a private party at Horizon World, and users in the same room told her. Disable her safety bubble setting.
Linked report video What the group says shows what happened to the researcher’s avatar from her point of view.
The video shows a male avatar getting very close to her and another male avatar watching over her. In the 28-second video, a bottle that looks like alcohol passes between the two avatars as the male voice makes lascivious comments.
One user reportedly kept telling researchers to “turn around so they could do it from behind” while the user outside the window could see.
“This sexual activity is not consensual, and researchers have described the experience as” disoriented “and confusing. “The report said.
Many people can quickly dismiss the assault in virtual reality as something that didn’t really happen.
“It’s still important, it still has a real impact on users,” said Vicky Wyatt, group campaign director. BBC..
Researchers have noticed that when another user touches you, the hand controller vibrates, creating a very disorienting and even disturbing physical experience during the virtual assault.
“It happened so quickly that I did a kind of separation. Some parts of my brain seem to have wtf, others seem to be insubstantial, and others this is. It seemed to be an important study, she said.
The report adds concern that virtual reality can be dangerous for women and groups pushed to the limit.
Researchers also reported that they had experienced homosexual aversion and racism at Horizon World and said they had witnessed gun violence on the platform.
This is not the first time a woman has reported sexual assault on a platform. 2021, psychotherapist and researcher Nina Jane Patel Reportedly sexually assaulted at Horizon World.
SumOfUs states that Meta needs better planning to mitigate the harm of the Metaverse.
At a shareholders’ meeting last week, it was reported that meta-investors wanted to report on the harm faced by Metaverse users, but shareholders rejected that idea.
Horizontal Worlds is currently only available to US and Canadian users.
In the second half of 2021 Meta has announced a new plan to shift its focus to the Metaverse, investing approximately $ 10 billion in Facebook Reality Labs and creating 10,000 Metaverse-related jobs in Europe.
Just this month, Mark Zuckerberg gave us the first appetizing glance. Meta’s Secret VR Headset.. Development of Metaverse technology is on track, but it’s still unclear if the company is working on the safety features of these platforms.
Metro.co.uk is asking Meta for comment.
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