MetaCrimes: Criminal accountability for conducts in the Metaverse

The research addresses a topic whose precise boundaries are yet to be defined: the criminal accountability for conducts committed in the Metaverse. Following a short introduction motivating the reason why this issue has to be considered as pivotal both for the Web and for the society, the main problem raised by the research will be identified, namely, whether an action taken against a person, that in real-life would be a criminal conduct, is considerable as a crime in the Metaverse as well. A short assessment of the (very little so far) current state of the art, as well as the proposed approach and methodology will be then overviewed; finally, the contribution shows its current results, and concludes stating that countries are highly encouraged to shape respective criminal frameworks when applied to the Metaverse, and that the international community should consider the topic as a priority in its agenda. Nevertheless, further experimental and research work has still to be made.