Campaigners fear under 18s will be vulnerable on the platform
Child safety campaigners have called on Facebook’s billionaire owner to stop his plans to allow youngsters in the metaverse.
Meta, the parent company of the social media platform, intends to open up its virtual reality social network to children aged 13 to 17.
The metaverse is an immersive virtual world in which we interact with each other in 3D environments using virtual-reality headsets. Mark Zuckerberg has pledged to spend $100 billion (£83 billion) over the next decade on the futuristic venture.
However, campaigners fear under 18s will be vulnerable on the platform. A coalition of over 70 leading experts and advocates for health, privacy, and children’s rights are urging Meta to not allow minors into Horizon Worlds, Meta’s flagship virtual reality app for its Quest headset.
Josh Golin, executive director of Fairplay, said: “It’s beyond appalling that Mark Zuckerberg wants to save his failing Horizons World platform by targeting teens. Already, children are being exposed to homophobia, racism, sexism, and other reprehensible content on Horizon Worlds.”
Katharina Kopp, deputy director of the Center for Digital Democracy, said: “Meta is demonstrating once again that it doesn’t consider the best interest of young people when it develops plans to expand its business operations. Before it considers opening its Horizon Worlds metaverse operation to teens, it should first commit to fully exploring the potential consequences.
“That includes engaging in an independent and research-based effort addressing the impact of virtual experiences on young people’s mental and physical well-being, privacy, safety, and potential exposure to hate and other harmful content. It should also ensure that minors don’t face forms of discrimination in the virtual world, which tends to perpetuate and exacerbate ‘real life’ inequities.”
Currently, Horizon Worlds is supposed to be limited to over 18s. However, other apps are listed as suitable for users as young as 13.
A Meta spokesman said: “Before we make Horizon Worlds available to teens, we will have additional protections and tools in place to help provide age-appropriate experiences.”
