Kenyan Police Raided Worldcoin Warehouse in Nairobi

Remember that on August 2, the Kenyan government made a move to halt all activities related to Worldcoin’s registration and the distribution of its native token, WLD, which occurred within two weeks of the project’s launch. This action was taken in response to concerns from relevant agencies who seek to examine the legality and authenticity of the project’s inception.

Worldcoin was introduced in July as a decentralized initiative aimed at establishing a means to differentiate between humans and AI bots. Using a concept referred to as proof-of-person, the project asserts its ability to maintain privacy while addressing issues of income inequality.

One of the aspects of the Worldcoin project that has generated controversy revolves around the requirement for users to demonstrate their human identity online by using a biometric verification device called the Orb, which scans their irises. In exchange for this verification, users are rewarded with free WLD tokens. Although the team behind the project, led by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, has assured that the Orb doesn’t retain users’ data, this method has triggered concerns regarding potential breaches of privacy.

The machines located at Worldcoin’s warehouse in Nairobi were confiscated and transported to the headquarters of the Directorate of Criminal Investigations for further analysis and investigation. Immaculate Kassait, the Data Commissioner, revealed that the parent company of Worldcoin, known as Tools for Humanity, failed to disclose its true intentions during the registration process.

The Kenyan Capital Markets Authority has raised its own concerns regarding Worldcoin’s registration activities and has issued warnings to residents that the project lacks regulation within the country. Despite Worldcoin’s assertion that its operations align with Kenyan regulations, Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki informed Parliament that the project has not been registered as a legal entity.

Worldcoin had announced that it selected Kenya as the first African nation to launch its operations due to the country’s flourishing technology sector and the substantial number of Kenyan individuals engaged in crypto trading. Additionally, Worldcoin operates in other countries such as the UK, Germany, Spain, and Japan.

In parallel, data protection agencies in several regions, including France, Germany, and the UK, have initiated investigations into the crypto project to ensure that no violations of data regulations are occurring.

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