Predicting Future Cybercrime Trends in the Metaverse Era

Abstract

The Metaverse is a virtual world where users can engage with each other and digital objects in real time, and its usage is growing significantly. However, the rise of virtual environments comes with the risk of cybercrime. This chapter presents the current cybercrime overview in the metaverse by examining recent incidents and standard methods cybercriminals employ. Moreover, it explores factors that could influence cybercrime trends in the Metaverse era, including technological advancements and evolving security measures. Furthermore, it evaluates current and potential cybersecurity measures to prevent or mitigate cybercrime in virtual environments and the importance of user education and responsible online behavior. Finally, we emphasize the need for industry, government, and users to collaborate to mitigate cybercrime in the Metaverse era due to possible negative impacts on social, economic, and environmental settings and its merits benefit people at different levels of endeavors.