Kenyan authorities have leveled allegations against Worldcoin, claiming that the organization is involved in acts of espionage and poses a significant threat to the country’s sovereignty. These accusations have emerged as a result of an ongoing investigation conducted by Kenya’s Ad hoc committee, which was initiated in response to concerns raised by the public regarding Worldcoin’s operations, as reported by local media outlets.
Worldcoin has come under intense scrutiny due to its alleged data mining practices, wherein it purportedly collected personal data from Kenyan citizens by scanning their irises in exchange for cryptocurrency tokens.
This controversial operation reportedly took place at various locations in Nairobi, including shopping malls and educational institutions, starting in May 2021. In August of the same year, the Kenyan government suspended Worldcoin’s activities within the country.
The committee, headed by Gabriel Tongoyo, a Member of Parliament representing Narok West, has called upon the Directorate of Criminal Investigations to conduct a comprehensive investigation into two foreign companies associated with Worldcoin: Tools for Humanity (TFH) Corp and Tools for Humanity (TFH) Gmbh. These foreign entities are suspected of operating illegally in Kenya, in violation of several Kenyan laws, including the Data Protection Act, Consumer Protection Act, and Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act.
Notably, these foreign entities do not appear in the Business Registration Services database of registered businesses or companies in Kenya, raising doubts about their legal authorization to conduct business within the country. Furthermore, it has been reported that Worldcoin’s application for registration as a data controller on August 22, 2022, occurred a year after it had already commenced its operations in Kenya, which is deemed a violation of the Data Protection Act of 2019 according to Kenyan authorities.
One of the primary concerns surrounding Worldcoin’s activities is the transmission of real-time iris images, which are converted into digital code and sent to the company’s third-party servers located overseas. While Worldcoin claims that the collected data is securely stored on Amazon Web Services in South Africa, questions remain about the ability to retract and delete this data when necessary, as well as whether this data transfer complies with Section 48 of the Data Protection Act.
The investigation has revealed that approximately 350,000 Kenyans had registered with Worldcoin by the time the government suspended its activities on August 2, 2023. Despite facing regulatory challenges, Worldcoin continues to attract a significant number of new sign-ups from around the world.