The U.K.’s National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) published a damning report Wednesday that showed the metaverse is being used by perverts to sexually exploit children.
Via data obtained from U.K. police, the NSPCC found that there were eight instances in the United Kingdom of child exploitation involving virtual reality headsets and warned that this new technology is exposing children to new risks.
“For the first time, virtual reality environments, such as the Metaverse which is accessed through Oculus headsets, were found to be involved in child sexual abuse image crimes,” the group reported.
Facebook’s new rebrand logo Meta is seen on smartphone in front of displayed logo of Facebook, Messenger, Instagram, Whatsapp and Oculus in this illustration picture taken October 28, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration
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The NSPCC noted a 66 percent increase in child abuse image offenses recorded by police over the last five years. While Snapchat was used the most to distribute child abuse images, three social media platforms owned by Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta – Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp – were used 33 percent of the time.
In addition to making the distribution of illegal content easier for criminals, social media has harmed children in other ways. According to a new report published by the CDC, there has been a 60 percent increase in teen girls seriously considering suicide. Many studies have also linked adolescent social media use to increased feelings of loneliness and social isolation.
The icons of Meta apps Facebook, Messenger, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Oculus VR. ((Photo Illustration by Onur Dogman/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images))
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Meta and other big tech companies have been the focus of public and regulatory scrutiny -both in the U.S. and abroad – in recent years over concerns about free speech, misinformation, online harassment, the sharing of illegal materials and foreign influence campaigns.
In a statement about the new report, NSPCC Chief Executive Sir Peter Wanless called the increased occurrence of child abuse “incredibly alarming, but reflect just the tip of the iceberg of what children are experiencing online.”
A Meta Oculus Quest 2 virtual reality (VR) headset during a media preview of the Meta Store in Burlingame, California, U.S., on Wednesday, May 4, 2022. (id Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
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He warned that “online sexual abuse risks becoming normalised for a generation of children.”
The group called for amendments to the U.K.’s Online Safety Bill to increase child safety protections and hold big tech bosses “criminally liable if their sites continue to expose children to preventable abuse.”