Kenya Orders Worldcoin to Stop Biometric Data Collection

Kenya’s High Court has ordered a halt to biometric data collection by Sam Altman’s company, World (formerly Worldcoin), unless it conducts a proper Data Protection Impact Assessment. The court ruling also blocks the company from using cryptocurrency as an incentive to collect user data.

Good to know

• World must delete any biometric data collected in Kenya without proper consent.
• The court issued a seven-day deadline to erase illegally obtained data.
• Similar regulatory actions were taken recently by Indonesia.

The May 5 decision came after a case brought forward by the Katiba Institute, a legal advocacy group focused on upholding the Kenyan constitution. The court sided with Katiba’s concerns, finding that World had violated section 31 of Kenya’s Data Protection Act by collecting iris and facial scans without proper safeguards.

Justice Aburili Roselyne issued the ruling, stating World and its agents must permanently delete the data under supervision from the Data Protection Commissioner. The order also targeted the use of Worldcoin tokens as inducement for participation, citing that consent gained through such methods is invalid under the law.

In her judgment, the court granted, “An order of Mandamus compelling the Worldcoin Foundation and its agents to permanently delete (under the supervision of the Data Protection Commissioner) within seven days any biometric data collected in Kenya without undertaking (or using an inadequate) Data Protection Impact Assessment contrary to section 31 of the Data Protection Act, 2019 and by consent obtained through inducement of a cryptocurrency—Worldcoin.”

The legal battle goes back to August 2023, when Katiba Institute first filed its judicial review. Around the same time, authorities in Kenya cracked down on World, accusing it of operating without a license. That prompted the company to halt its activities temporarily. Although a police investigation ended months later, the court case continued, resulting in the recent decision.

The ruling also arrives shortly after Indonesian officials took similar action against World. Authorities there accused the company of breaking electronic system regulations and operating without valid registration.