A metaverse-based virtual reality platform for online certification using Web3

Context: Metaverse is an emerging technology that synchronizes physical and virtual things. It is used to communicate and simulate the virtual world with the physical world through human actions in real-life scenarios. Combining blockchain and metaverse technologies produces an archetype shift in the educational technology domain regarding online certification, largely due to the impact of synchronizing educational technologies. The combined technology elevates the security measure, ensures transparency, enhances accountability, and reduces costs for the online certification process. Proposed Solution: The suggested solution (MetaEduTech) accelerates the certificate verification process by (i) extenuating the risks of misuse by leveraging decentralized storage of the InterPlanetary File System (IPFS), (ii) securing the certificate, and (iii) providing the metaverse environment for certification. We perform experiments and evaluate the MetaEduTech solution by deploying a blockchain-based smart contract model on Ethereum on the Microsoft Windows platform. Results and Implications: The evaluation results show (i) the efficiency of the query response (5 ms–50 ms), (ii) and the performance of the query execution (CPU utilization between 2%–6%). The findings in this research underscore the effectiveness of the proposed solution with the potential to modernize the certification exam process. The proposed solution and its evaluation can provide insights into how to address the persistent issues surrounding certificate authenticity related to academic verification in a metaverse environment.