In a landmark decision highlighting growing concerns over digital privacy, the Kenyan High Court has ordered Worldcoin to delete all data it collected in the country.
The project, which was co-founded by Sam Altman, co-founder of OpenAI, and Alex Blanca, went live in August last year and saw users flock to its orbs across different parts of the country to be issued the tokens worth about Ksh.7,000 ($45).
However, users were only issued with the tokens once they approved that they’re actually humans and not robots by getting their eye’s unique iris pattern scanned.
The ruling follows mounting concerns over data protection and privacy violations by the company, which had earlier led to the suspension of Worldcoin’s operations in Kenya.
At the time, WorldCoin responded: “In line with Kenyan laws and regulations, WorldCoin ensures full compliance and transparency in all its activities within the country. The project is committed to fostering a constructive dialogue with local stakeholders, including the government and relevant authorities, to ensure a smooth and mutually beneficial partnership."
Despite these concerns, Kenya still emerged as the top country showing interest in Worldcoin, according to CoinJournal research released in February last year, which examined Google Trends data.
The data indicates a remarkable level of interest from Kenyan users, far surpassing that of other countries.
Kenya led with a Google Trends score of 100, demonstrating strong curiosity and engagement with Worldcoin.
The Court ruling on Monday ordered the company cease processing such data without a proper Data Protection Impact Assessment or valid consent.
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