The complexity of the data ethical dilemma in the metaverse

The Web3 community has a duty to create a code of ethics to make the virtual landscape a safe place.

Imagine a world where a best-presented version of yourself can make dreams come true in an open digital landscape. Experiences will be all-encompassing and limited only by imagination. That’s the draw of the other way around.

The metaverse sees the convergence of social media, the internet, and gaming in one place, and data serves as the DNA of the entire ecosystem. The rapidly evolving environment features custom avatars of the controlling users. Looking ahead, artificial intelligence technology will take a few 2D images and render an entire 3D world around them. A captured photo can become a highly photo-realistic humanoid avatar in seconds.

Increasing challenges

These avatars – the online projections of the best digital versions of ourselves – could serve to feed our own vanities. In the Web 2.0 world, there is a thriving culture that allows social media users to anonymously bully and harass each other through offenses that would never happen face-to-face. This is also common in gaming, where the mindset is that the “character” is not representative of the real person playing.

When that character becomes a digitized replica of a real person – enabled by AI digitization – a user looking at that digitized representation of themselves while being mocked, beaten or worse will certainly perceive such offenses much more negatively than the same action applied to a cartoonish avatar.

This new and developing ecosystem will pose ethical challenges for users and the brands seeking to achieve deeper connection and resonance with consumers in the metaverse. But before companies can begin to address the ethical challenges and new norms of interaction in a digital landscape, organizations must begin to establish the frameworks and context for dialogue.

This first step is to develop a set of core ethical principles and guidelines for the data that defines the current profile of the individual today. By establishing guidelines that serve as day-to-day decision-making guides, the organization begins to build its culture, a foundation that will be well served in an increasingly digital future.

Brands will want to participate in this space to be involved in consumers’ digital experiences, but will certainly be wary of an environment that is ethically compromised.

To date, we have not formulated and applied ethical standards to the digital space, and the ecosystem only seems to become more complicated as we look to the future. It is the job of brands to define and instill in the ecosystem the ethical standards tolerated within those experiences.

Digital technology moves so fast that legislation, and even society itself, can barely keep up. The primary challenge may not be the metaverse, but rather the mindset and expectations of the users hindering it. All those involved in the Web3 digital community will have a duty to create a code of ethics to make the virtual landscape a safe place for users to interact.

Brands need to be trained in the the potential of metaverse as a new channel for marketing activation, but must also be “metaversely prepared” for the capabilities and constructs required to manage and oversee those new and diverse experiences.

For starters, many organizations bypass a proper scrutiny of their data ethics guidelines, as such efforts are often viewed as an operational exercise of regulatory compliance and risk management.

Metaverscurious brands should understand that data compliance and data ethics are not synonymous. Data compliance sets expectations for brands to stay north of their data commitments. Data ethics provides internal clarity on how the organization should behave with respect to customer data once compliance criteria are met.

The data ethical conversation

The metaverse and other Web3 capabilities will only complicate the data ethics conversation. Awareness is the first touchstone for developing a set of data ethics principles and guidelines as an important preparatory tool. Brands need to “walk before they run,” conducting a thorough review of their current data ethics framework before diving into the metaverse.

Tackling the subject of data ethics can be daunting for organizations because the concept can feel academic and philosophical, devoid of the practical application and tactics organizations need to communicate operationally.

Consumers count on brands to be ready for the future and protect their digital identities. Just as they trust brands for quality, reliability or other attributes, consumers trust brands to build experiences and commitments in an ethical and professional manner. Having a tested and well-adopted infrastructure to address that inherent risk will give brands a good reputation for future-proofing themselves.

Stay future-proof

The possibilities that the metaverse can offer brands are far-reaching. While still in its infancy, it is a growing and powerful marketing tool for engaging with an entirely new customer base that actively uses the metaverse to connect with products and services.

Organizations can tend to sidestep complex but important conversations about how they plan to contribute to an ethically sound metaverse. By starting a conversation today that examines current data ethics principles and guidelines, brands will create a structure and framework for ongoing discussion as they look at more ambiguous and complex opportunities Web3 will present. Building internal rigor and experience in addressing those challenges will prove to be a key competitive advantage.

Future-proof your brand and prepare for the exciting opportunities presented by the metaverse.

Tom Corey is VP Consulting Services in North America at Wonderman Thompson.