The Metaverse Youth Safety Guide has been released to help inform young people using technologies such as Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) in a partnership between Meta and PROJECT ROCKIT, a youth-driven movement in Australia dedicated to combatting cyberbullying and helping young people stay safe online.
The guide was born from the insights gathered in PROJECT ROCKIT’s 'Our Metaverse: Young People and the Digital Future' report, published in 2022. The report was developed through consultation with 42 youth leaders, nominated by prominent youth, mental health, and technology organisations across Australia, including the Centre for Multicultural Youth, Indigital, Minus18, Orygen, ReachOut, and UNICEF Australia.
In response to these findings, the Metaverse Youth Safety Guide toolkit was created and offers practical tips to help young individuals engage safely with AR and VR technologies.
The toolkit includes tips for young people and their parents including physical safety precautions like making sure VR headgear is securely set up; online safety measures such as utilising privacy settings and reporting mechanisms; and dedicated safety recommendations for virtual multi-player environments like Meta’s Horizon Worlds that involve muting, reporting, and leveraging human moderation to maintain a secure and positive environment for users.
Mia Garlick, regional director of public policy for Meta, said its proud to partner with Project ROCKIT on the launch of this practical toolkit for young people so they feel prepared to engage safely with emerging AR and VR technologies.
"This new toolkit will add to the range of VR safety tools and products we have in place to ensure young people can safely enjoy exploring new technologies," she said.
"It’s important we empower them to use these technologies safely, and that we give parents and guardians the resources to help navigate this ever-changing online landscape.”
Lucy Thomas, co-founder & CEO, PROJECT ROCKIT, said following the release of the Our Metaverse: Young People and the Digital Future study, the company developed the toolkit for young people and their families to navigate the emerging online technology world in a way that is both safe and empowered.
"It is critical that we have partners like Meta who work with us to help educate our future generations, tackle online hate and create a safer, kinder and more thriving digital world," said Thomas.
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