Building a Responsible Metaverse Studies show that trust is the decisive Lack of Transparency, variable in forming commitment, which Lack of Trust explains why users are more willing to engage with online platforms they consider trustworthy.6 This was also supported by our consumer study. For instance, when Billions of people around the world cannot recall prompted about factors that influenced a time in their lives when social media platforms their selection of NFT platforms, 59% of did not exist. But only a few remember a time consumers ranked strong security and data when these platforms were not controversial. protection capabilities at the top, more important than “ease of use” and “popularity In their early days, social media platforms of marketplace.” Across geographies and allowed like-minded people to connect and generations, more than 70% of respondents share information in novel ways that created agreed that robust privacy, safety and communities and social bonds. However, as security mechanisms would impact companies raced to monetize their services, their willingness to engage in metaverse they created algorithms and other tools that 7 facilitated the spread of information based experiences. on engagement. Consequently, harmful or inaccurate content spreads quickly and is difficult to police. Data and testing have shown the power of Social networks started as a force for good, but “illusory truth”: the more often a piece of a lack of transparency about how platforms are misinformation is repeated, the more likely it moderated and managed has radically shifted is that a person will believe it. And an internal sentiment. This is why the metaverse must start study at a social network showed that the with a clear understanding of the potential for amount of positive and negative information in harm rather than a hope that the worst will not in user’s feed can shift their emotions. Online happen.8 engagement, it turns out, influences our behavior, both online and off. 8