Since criminals are moving their operations to the metaverse, the police are equipping themselves to deal with this evolution of crimes. The International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) has launched its ‘Global Police Metaverse’ in hopes of training its forces to deal with crime in the virtual world. The event has raised curiosity about national security and tech law enthusiast about the future of law enforcement and how the role of international law in dealing with crimes in the metaverse. Though metaverse is still developing, the platform promises much more than social media and gaming options by aiming to alter how companies do business and also tap into the lives of laymen. With the growth of the metaverse, Interpol predicts the growth of financial and cybercrimes. However, it is not too late for the international law enforcement community to harness the use of international law to equip itself to deal with these crimes. We are presented with an opportunity to evolve international law along with the metaverse. Identifying these patterns before the metaverse is fully developed can be used to formulate international law and policy to govern the platform and reduce crime. Unfortunately, technology has proven to take lesser time to develop than international law and policy.
Metaverse and State Sovereignty
The principle of State Sovereignty has evolved itself, encompassing land, territorial waters, space and cyberspace. With the advent of cybercrimes, lawmakers are forced to look between state territorial boundaries in analyzing state sovereignty. Cybercrimes (of a certain magnitude and above) today can even trigger an armed conflict. While existing intellectual property laws, cybersecurity laws, and tax and commercial laws can be applied to the metaverse, international law must address the criminal jurisprudence of the metaverse. The creation of a metaverse may mean a global society without the limitations of state boundaries. The implications of this in international criminal law, such as extradition laws and the principle of sovereignty may be limitless. International Law, in general, and International Criminal Law, in general, often is restricted by the principle of sovereignty. If the metaverse is developed as a platform independent of the creator’s nationality, international criminal law can be utilised to address crimes in cyberspace that have physical, real-time implications. The principle of universal jurisdiction can be the bedrock of discussion regarding jurisdiction in the metaverse. The metaverse must be built around fundamental human rights, labour rights, and environmental protection, and Universal Jurisdiction enforced by international law must supplement it. Many legal scholars have coined the term ‘meta jurisdiction’ to explore a nuanced universal jurisdiction where global rules are framed by governments and stakeholders of the metaverse.
Metaverse and Attribution of Identity: The Lacuna in the Law
The inability to apply the same regulations of general cybercrimes to the metaverse where attribution of identity to an avatar is recently discussed would present a challenge in creating the legal framework for the metaverse. While cybercrimes of the past affected a person in real life and the law had to protect the person, the advent of the metaverse has increased the responsibility twin-fold, i.e., to protect the online avatar and the physical being. However, this approach also creates conflict as the law might lose its humane approach. Currently, prevailing laws cannot be invoked to protect victims of crimes such as assault and molestation. In India, a young woman had sought legal action against the ‘violation’ of her metaverse avatar. Unfortunately, neither Indian nor international law can prosecute the perpetrator for sexual crimes. The closest recourse would be to invoke Information Technology laws to prosecute ‘obscene content’ online, which triggers a far inferior punishment compared to sexual assault. This incident must be recognised as a wake-up call about how law, especially international law, must be updated to address the future of the metaverse.
Tackling the Problem
The legal community must distinguish crimes in the metaverse from other cybercrimes to set up this legal framework. The technological advancement of the metaverse must be compared to crime in reality, as the effects of these crimes would have a similar impact. Many Governments are already looking into the issue, with the House of Commons (UK) looking into creating an ‘Online Safety Bill’ to ensure online platforms have systems in place that deal with illegal and harmful content. The United Nations’ specialised agency or information and communication technologies must set international safeguards to protect ‘avatars’, and the law enforcement wing must venture into tackling crimes committed on this platform. We may not understand the metaverse, but its impact will be more significant than we might comprehend. The international legal community must be ready to tackle this. The Metaverse is here and now- and Meta Law is the way forward
References
The Metaverse: What are the legal implications? Clifford Chance, February 2022 https://www.cliffordchance.com/content/dam/cliffordchance/briefings/2022/02/the-metaverse-what-are-the-legal-implications.pdf
Sangani, Priyanka. “Metaverse crimes challenging, say legal experts” June 25, 2022 https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/technology/metaverse-crimes-challenging-say-legal-experts/articleshow/92443208.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst
Financial and cybercrimes top global police concerns, says new INTERPOL report, October 19, 2022. Interpol. https://www.interpol.int/fr/Actualites-et-evenements/Actualites/2022/Financial-and-cybercrimes-top-global-police-concerns-says-new-INTERPOL-report
Online Safety Bill: factsheet, Policy Paper, Government of UK, April 19, 2022 https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/online-safety-bill-supporting-documents/online-safety-bill-factsheet
By The European Institute for International Law and International Relations.
