Kenya suspends local activities of Worldcoin
Kenya’s interior ministry suspended Worldcoin’s local activities due to safety concerns, and government agencies are investigating its authenticity and legality in data processing for public safety.
The interior ministry of Kenya announced that it had suspended local activities of Worldcoin due to potential public safety concerns. Namely, Interior Minster Kithure Kindiki stated that government agencies are investigating Worldcoin’s authenticity and legality regarding its data processing to ensure public safety and integrity of financial transactions. The suspension covers Worldcoin activities and any other entity that may be engaging in similar activities in Kenya.
Why does this matter? According to local media reports, over 350,000 have signed up for Worldcoin in exchange for free cryptocurrency tokens. Therefore, the question raised over the suspension in Kenya is its effect on the Worldcoin tokens, which are being traded around the country.
Additionally, the Worldcoin project founded by OpenaI CEO Sam Altman has some governments investigating its potential financial, data protection, and public security risks. In the UK and France, authorities have been investigating Worldcoin’s compliance with the data protection laws and the threshold of its consent base approach to biometric data processing in European countries.