Kenya Parliamentary Committee Accuses Sam Altman's WorldCoin of Espionage

Kenya Parliamentary Committee Accuses Sam Altman’s WorldCoin of Espionage

Updated: 02 October 2023

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Kenya accused Sam Altman’s Worldcoin of espionage amid an investigation into how long the company has gathered data in the country.

The members of an ad hoc committee charged with probing Worldcoin, which offers to provide people with a global identity via eyeball scans and has also issued the WLD crypto token, said in a report tabled in parliament on Sept. 28 that its actions in the country ”constituted acts of espionage and a threat to statehood.”

At the centre of the investigation is that WorldCoin seemingly applied for registration as a data controller on August 22 last year, a year after commencing its activities in the country, violating the Data Protection Act of 2019.

The committee, headed by Gabriel Tongoyo, is thus asking for two affiliated foreign firms, Tools for Humanity (TFH) Corp and Tools for Humanity (TFH) GmbH, to be investigated for conducting alleged illicit operations in the country.

The committee’s says neither company is listed in the Business Registration Services database of Kenyan corporations and registered enterprises, and thus not permitted to do business in the country.

Worldcoin began data collection operations in Kenya in May 2021 across malls and learning institutions. The company set up stations with Orbs across 30 locations within the country’s capital, Nairobi, to scan irises and help users register on the Worldcoin app to receive free tokens.

Despite collecting data in the country for more than two years, investigations into Worldcoin’s activities in the country only began after the public raised concerns after Worldcoin’s formal launch, when it started scanning irises for its ID in July.

Government has SUSPENDED WorldCoin in Kenya. pic.twitter.com/WWg4YAfDSY

— Kenya West (@KinyanBoy) August 2, 2023

Worldcoin Scans Surged After July Launch

Scans surged after the launch and the crypto token’s value increased with newly registered users receiving WLD tokens equivalent to Ksh 7000. Its operations were halted by the government on Aug. 2, after about 350,000 Kenyans had been registered.

Kenyans were worried about what their data would be used for. Worldcoin said the data was securely stored in Amazon Web Services servers based in South Africa.

Apparently Worldcoin $WLD went to Kenya and was getting people's Biometrics through their Iris (eyes), Now that's suspicious.

Why is World coin getting people's Biometrics, what do they need it for? Also why is the Kenyan government fighting them?

Be Updated and Informed.

— Crypto Ambassador (@LordCrypto_) October 2, 2023

Questions remain regarding the data’s ability to be retracted and deleted when necessary and whether the transfer of personal data outside of Kenya complies with the country’s Data Protection Act.

Kenya Considers Regulatory Reforms

The Worldcoin issue has caused the country to consider regulatory reforms, especially through legislation to better protect its citizens. MPs have asked for legislative intervention to govern the collection of biodata from Kenyans “which has implications on privacy, security, health concerns and human rights.”

The Ad Hoc committee also proposed that stricter rules be applied for international businesses looking to register in Kenya as data controllers or processors. Such companies would have to fully disclose the use and storage of the gathered sensitive and personal data and they would have to show proof of registration with local regulatory organizations.

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