The victim of the alleged assault was a girl aged under 16.
Although there was no physical injury, officers said she suffered real physical and emotional trauma.
They added that such attacks are rife onmetaverseplatforms but none have resulted in prosecution in the UK.
That trend looks set to continue.
As this is yet to happen, existing legislation wouldnt cover a contact offence in a virtual world.
Tech companies cannot be expected to prevent every harmful act.
A clearer route to conviction could involve a prosecution for harassment or stalking.
These offences are more tailored to apply online, where theyre increasingly common.
Furthermore, the suspect must have known or suspected that their conduct would cause alarm or distress.
New rules needed?
The limits of existing legislation have sparked calls for new criminal offences that cover sexual conduct in the metaverse.
This could involve amending current laws or creating entirely new ones.
Its an issue thats caused chaos in the passage of the EUs Artificial Intelligence Act.
By the time the act applies, there may be another new AI wave that the rulebook cant contain.
This can leave victims fending for themselves in many situations.
Still, doesnt mean that new tech legislation is useless.
The law introduced four new criminal offences: harm-based communication, false communication, threatening communication, and cyber-flashing.
These measures represent a significant step forward, Moore said.
Moreover, a virtual world doesnt typically produce physical evidence of crime.
Theres also an argument that resources would be better used elsewhere.
Because of all these issues, policing of the metaverse will remain largely left to platform operators.
The feature was launched after numerous reports of sexual harassment in the VR game.
Pryor expects tech firms to take on greater responsibility for their users.
But he warns that they cant stop every online offence.
Story byThomas Macaulay
Thomas is the managing editor of TNW.
He leads our coverage of European tech and oversees our talented team of writers.
Away from work, he e(show all)Thomas is the managing editor of TNW.
He leads our coverage of European tech and oversees our talented team of writers.
Away from work, he enjoys playing chess (badly) and the guitar (even worse).
