When Interior Cabinet Secretary, Kithure Kindiki, declared the suspension of Worldcoin's operations in Kenya on Wednesday, August 2, very few people, if any, envisaged the global repercussions the move would have.
The directive issued by the Cabinet Secretary to halt Worldcoin's activities sent shockwaves through the investor community, resulting in a drastic 70 per cent decline in the company's valuation.
Kenya's intervention served as a catalyst, exposing the company's dubious practices. Investigations by the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC) revealed Worldcoin's deliberate disregard for Kenya's directives to cease their iris scanning operations.
In the aftermath of this damning disclosure, Worldcoin finds itself grappling to regain stability. Unless prompt measures are undertaken to counteract the company's plummeting valuation, the company is staring at the potential risk of sinking into negative territory.
Global industry observers have explained that investors are now steering clear of Worldcoin due to its data collection and storage practices.
In the wake of the disclosures made by the Interior Ministry and the Data Protection Commissioner's office, Worldcoin now finds itself under investigation by regulatory bodies in multiple countries.
Founded by Sam Altman of OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, Worldcoin had initially aspired to assert its dominance within the cryptocurrency market.
The bubble of Worldcoin's aspirations was abruptly burst by Kenya, which emerged as the first nation to raise concerns about the company's employment of iris scanning for biometric identification, a practice declared to be in direct violation of data protection laws.
Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC) in April 2022 started investigating the company and found out that its Data Protection Impact Assessment - a legal requirement for all agencies collecting and storing data - was unacceptable.
As such, the company was immediately ordered to stop its data collection activities in the country.
The company’s activities gained national attention when thousands of Kenyans turned up at Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) on August 1, to have their iris scanned in exchange for a Ksh7,000 token.
“The government has suspended forthwith, activities of Worldcoin and any other entity that may be similarly engaging the people of Kenya until relevant public agencies certify the absence of any risks to the general public whatsoever,” Kindiki stated while shutting down the company's operations. By Kioko Nyamasyo, Kenyans.co.ke
