The Kenyan government has formed a parliamentary committee to investigate the controversial cryptocurrency project Worldcoin. The 15-member committee, led by MP Gabriel Tongoyo, has 42 days to comprehensively review Worldcoin’s activities in the country.
This comes after Kenya suspended Worldcoin’s operations about three weeks ago due to concerns over its iris scanning program. The government ordered Worldcoin to stop collecting biometric data and personal information from citizens without proper oversight. Police even raided a Worldcoin facility in Nairobi, confiscating documents and equipment.
Beyond the parliamentary probe, Worldcoin has faced resistance from multiple Kenyan regulators. The judiciary halted its operations following a lawsuit, requiring Worldcoin to preserve all collected user data.
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki expressed worries to the investigative committee that Worldcoin’s iris scanning poses major security risks.
Worldcoin, created by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, rewards people with its WLD cryptocurrency for undergoing iris scans using “Orb” devices. While attracting nearly 2 million participants so far, the project has sparked backlash over handling people’s sensitive biometric information.
Kenya now joins France, Germany, and the UK in questioning the legality of Worldcoin’s approach. With users’ iris data stored centrally, major concerns persist around proper protocols and safeguards. Thus, probes into Worldcoin’s privacy protections and data storage policies continue gaining momentum globally.
LATEST POSTS
- Binance Coin Rises in Market Cap Rankings After Surpassing XRP
- X2 Token Sees Brief Price Spike Before Sharp Decline, Raising Concerns Over Sustainability
- The Sandbox(SAND) and Chainlink(LINK) See Gains, While Newcomer Pomerdoge Aims for Bigger Returns
- SmarDex (SDEX) Explores Innovations in DeFi With Multi-Chain Expansion
- Large Transactions Seen in Uniswap (UNI) – What Could This Mean?