Virtual world security inspection

Virtual property theft is a serious problem that exists in virtual worlds. Legitimate users of these worlds invest considerable amounts of time, effort and real-world money into obtaining virtual property, but unfortunately, are becoming victims of theft in high numbers. It is reported that there are over 1 billion registered users of virtual worlds containing virtual property items worth an estimated US$50 billion dollars. The problem of virtual property theft is complex, involving many legal, social and technological issues. The software used to access virtual worlds is of great importance as they form the primary interface to these worlds and as such the primary interface to conduct virtual property theft. The security vulnerabilities of virtual world applications have not, to date, been examined. This study aims to use the process of software inspection to discover security vulnerabilities that may exist within virtual world software – vulnerabilities that enable virtual property theft to occur. Analyzing three well know virtual world applications World of Warcraft, Guild Wars and Entropia Universe, this research utilized security analysis tools and scenario testing with focus on authentication, trading, intruder detection and virtual property recovery. It was discovered that all three examples were susceptible to keylogging, mail and direct trade methods were the most likely method for transferring stolen items, intrusion detection is of critical concern to all VWEs tested, stolen items were unable to be recovered in all cases and lastly occurrences of theft were undetectable in all cases. The results gained in this study present the key problem areas which need to be addressed to improve security and reduce the occurrence of virtual property theft

Virtual Property, Real Concerns

The status of digital property protection, especially in virtual worlds, is uncertain to say the least. These are the issues that I will review in this note. In section II, I will discuss the foundations of virtual worlds and their growth from pre-computer roots to present day sprawling universes. This background will provide a foundation for novices in the virtual world realm and an anchor for the important role that these games play in the lives of not only young Americans, but people of all ages and nationalities around the world. Part III will discuss the critical characteristics of virtual property. The conjunction between virtual property and physical property-such as exclusivity, persistence, transferability and transformative properties-create the value in virtual property that makes protection of the property important. With virtual property characteristics described, I will discuss various examples of just how critical this virtual property has become, not only to the lives of individuals, but to society in general, and what protections are currently in place, such as licensing agreements. This will set the stage for the remainder of the note. Part IV will describe several common theories on virtual property rights, including the Lockean Labor Theory, Personality Theory, Utilitarianism, and the idea of treating virtual property as intangible real property. The merits and shortcomings of these various theories will be discussed. Part V will discuss current implementations of virtual property protection, including physical protection through code and some actual and current legal frameworks-both within the United States and abroad-that are currently available to gainers and virtual world developers. Finally, Part VI will discuss some practical considerations of any system that intends to extend protection to virtual property and the inherent dangers of applying virtual property protection with a broad brush. I propose a new solution to protecting user rights in property through a hybrid of natural protection. The protection is layered and built on the extension of an existing framework that is made up of the same software code that already controls virtual worlds. The software creates a high-level boundary of allowable behavior. In areas where software cannot properly protect, such as in areas of fraud or theft, the current legal-property regime takes over-much as it does with tangible property. Courts can apply standard property law while overlaying the virtual world rules and the social norms within virtual world. In this way, property can be protected even in virtual worlds where certain kinds of theft are part of the game play

Inheritance of Digital Media

This is a preprint of a chapter accepted for publication by Facet Publishing. This extract has been taken from the author’s original manuscript and has not been edited. The definitive version of this piece may be found in 'Partners for Preservation: Advancing digital preservation through cross-community collaboration' Facet, London, 9781783303472 which can be purchased from http://www.facetpublishing.co.uk/title.php?id=303472#about-ta