🔔🔔NEW: 🇰🇪 Kenya's High Court has ruled against Sam Altman's Worldcoin project, ordering it to delete all biometric data collected from Kenyan users due to violations of constitutional privacy rights.
The court's decision, delivered on May 5, 2025, by Justice Aburili Roselyne, includes:
- Deletion of Biometric Data: Worldcoin must permanently delete all facial images and iris scans collected from Kenyan users within seven days, under the supervision of the Data Protection Commissioner.
- Prohibition on Further Data Collection: The project is barred from collecting or processing any further biometric data in Kenya, citing failure to conduct an adequate data protection impact assessment.
- Nullification of Data Collection Decision: The court issued a certiorari order, effectively quashing World's decision to collect and process biometric data in Kenya without proper consent.
The ruling stems from a petition filed by the Katiba Institute and ICJ Kenya, which argued that Worldcoin's data collection practices breached Kenya's Data Protection Act of 2019.
Specifically, the court found that:
- Inadequate Consent: Users were incentivized with cryptocurrency tokens, compromising the legitimacy of their consent.
- Lack of Impact Assessment: Worldcoin failed to conduct a required data protection impact assessment before initiating data collection.
This decision marks a significant victory for digital rights advocates in Kenya and may influence other jurisdictions where Worldcoin operates.
The project's native token, WLD, dropped nearly 10% following the court's decision.
Despite this setback, Worldcoin has announced plans to expand in the US, launching in six cities.
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