On August 6, 2025, a severe warning from China's highest security agency dropped a heavy bomb in the global cryptocurrency and technology sectors. The Ministry of National Security (MSS) issued a statement through its official social media account, sternly pointing out that certain activities of 'distributing free cryptocurrencies' as bait, and conducting mass scans to collect users' iris and other biometric data, pose a severe threat to China's personal information security and even national security.
Although the full announcement does not directly mention any company names, the operational model it describes—scanning irises in exchange for digital tokens—aligns closely with the cryptocurrency project 'Worldcoin,' co-founded by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. This unnamed 'named' warning is widely interpreted as the most explicit and severe signal from the Chinese authorities to biometric data encryption projects represented by Worldcoin.
Unnamed Warning
In its announcement, the Ministry of National Security detailed this potential threat. The announcement pointed out that a 'certain overseas company' is using the issuance of cryptocurrencies as a pretext to scan and collect users' iris information worldwide, and subsequently transferring these highly sensitive biometric data sources to unknown locations.
The Ministry of National Security emphasizes that biometric features such as facial recognition, fingerprints, and irises are unique, immutable, and non-reproducible, making them extremely important personal identity identifiers in the digital age. Once this data is leaked or misused, the consequences could be unimaginable. Malicious individuals may use this information for identity theft, financial fraud, or even illegal surveillance.
By elevating this issue to the level of national security, the Ministry of National Security has expressed deeper concerns. The announcement mentions evidence indicating that foreign intelligence agencies have been attempting to illegally collect biometric data from other countries and use this data to forge identities to access sensitive areas or carry out espionage activities. Therefore, this large-scale, indiscriminate transfer of citizens' biometric data overseas undoubtedly poses a significant risk to national security.
To this end, the Ministry of National Security urges Chinese citizens to remain highly vigilant and never sell their valuable biometric information for trivial gains. It encourages the public to report any suspicious data collection activities to national security agencies immediately.
Global Controversy of Worldcoin
Although Chinese officials have maintained diplomatic restraint, global media and analysts have no doubt that the warning is directly aimed at Worldcoin.
Since its inception, the Worldcoin project has been accompanied by tremendous controversy. Its core concept is to establish a reliable 'Proof of Humanity' system in a future likely to be filled with general artificial intelligence (AGI), effectively distinguishing real humans from AI robots. To achieve this goal, the project designed a spherical device called 'Orb' that sets up scanning points around the globe. Users willing to let the Orb scan their irises can receive a Worldcoin (WLD) token as a reward.
This radical model, while attracting a large number of users from over 160 countries in a short period, has also triggered a global regulatory storm and privacy concerns. China is not the first country to raise a red flag. South Korea: In 2024, the Personal Information Protection Commission (PIPC) of South Korea imposed a fine of approximately $830,000 on Worldcoin and its parent company Tools For Humanity (TFH) for violating data protection laws. Multiple countries have banned: Several countries and regions, including Kenya, Brazil, Spain, Portugal, and Hong Kong, have successively banned or suspended Worldcoin's iris scanning activities. General scrutiny: Regulatory agencies in countries like Germany, Colombia, and Indonesia have also launched in-depth investigations into Worldcoin's data protection compliance and the transparency of its privacy policies.
The warning from China's Ministry of National Security is undoubtedly the harshest so far in this global regulatory storm. It no longer addresses the issue merely from the perspective of personal privacy protection but directly questions the fundamental model of such projects from the high ground of 'national security.'
It is noteworthy that the Ministry of National Security's warning this time is not without reason, as it is backed by the gradually established and increasingly perfected data security legal system in China in recent years.
China has successively introduced and implemented a series of significant laws, including the Data Security Law, the Cybersecurity Law, and the Personal Information Protection Law. These regulations delineate clear and strict legal boundaries for the collection, storage, use, and cross-border transmission of sensitive information (especially biometric data such as facial recognition and irises). Any individual or organization, regardless of their registered location, must strictly adhere to these regulations as long as they process the personal information of Chinese citizens within China.
This means that the warning from the Ministry of National Security is not just a verbal reminder, but a serious declaration against potential illegal activities. Any project attempting to conduct a model similar to Worldcoin within China will face severe penalties under Chinese law.
Web3 Idealism and National Data Sovereignty
China's national-level security alert against Worldcoin-style projects marks a fierce collision between an emerging and highly controversial business model in the Web3 space and the powerful will of national sovereignty.
On one hand, there are Web3 idealists represented by Worldcoin. They attempt to use decentralized technological solutions to solve grand problems that the future world may face (such as human-machine distinction) and advocate for a borderless global governance model driven by code and consensus.
On the other hand, there are countries represented by China that increasingly value data sovereignty. From their perspective, citizens' biometric data is one of the core strategic resources of the nation, and its security and control must never be in the hands of any overseas entity not subject to domestic laws.
This incident has sounded the loudest alarm for all projects attempting to bundle sensitive personal data with encrypted assets. It clearly indicates that any technological innovation, no matter how grand its vision, will face strong countermeasures from the state apparatus once it touches upon the red line of 'data (national) sovereignty.' In the digital age, the struggle for control over data has already become a new battleground for great power competition.