Oculus and Meta have made a small update to Horizon Worlds and Horizon Venues, their metaverse apps. From now on, a personal shield will be activated by default to counter attempts at aggression and sexual harassment.
While the first cases of harassment have been reported in the Facebook metaverse (Meta), the company has decided to introduce a virtual shield activated by default around the avatar of users. This safety bubble will ensure a minimum distance between all avatars and will be available on all profiles.
“Today we are announcing Personal Boundary [entendez “limite personnelle” ou “bouclier personnel”, NDLR] for Horizon Worlds and Horizon Venuesspecifies Meta in its press release. Personal Boundary prevents avatars from approaching within a set distance of each other, creating a more personal space for individuals and making it easier to prevent unwanted interactions. Personal Boundary will begin rolling out today and by default will appear to have a distance of almost a meter between your avatar and others. Over time, we will continue to make improvements as we learn how this affects people’s experiences.”
The company also clarifies that, if someone tries to enter your personal limit, the system will stop their forward movement when they reach the limit and that, even with the most advanced equipment, the interaction will not be felt, as the personal limit does not incorporate haptic feedback. Oculus already offered a somewhat similar system with the hands of avatars, which disappeared if they encroached on someone’s space.
Last December, during a large-scale test in Horizon, a woman reported a case of sexual assault. The company had indicated that this was an isolated event and that the user had not activated her personal shield. Still, it is symptomatic of the toxicity of online environments.