Worldcoin, the cryptocurrency project embroiled in controversy over its data mining practices, has vehemently denied any malicious intent or monetary exploitation of collected data.
The company's response comes as the Data Commissioner, Immaculate Kassait, moves to revoke its registration certificate, which the State Law Office claims was issued irregularly.
In a recent appearance before the National Assembly Adhoc Committee investigating their operations, Tools for Humanity, the parent firm of the Worldcoin Project, defended its data collection methods.
They asserted that iris biometrics represented a scalable and fraud-resistant approach that also prioritized user privacy.
"For the avoidance of doubt, Worldcoin does not and never will involve the collection or selling of data," stated Tools for Humanity's Chief Executive Officer, Alex Blania, during the hearing.
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Blania emphasized that it was impossible to link biometric data to World ID, adding, "Further, the majority of the internal schematics and technical details of the technology are publicly available on the internet for everyone to review."
Despite Worldcoin's assurances, questions surrounding its data mining practices have persisted.
The Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC) recently revoked the company's certificate of registration, originally issued in June 2022.
Worldcoin's Chief Legal Officer, Scott Thomas, disclosed this development and expressed concerns about the fairness of the cancellation process.
"ODPC revoked our certificate yesterday evening, and no doubt this is of interest. They provided four reasons for the cancellation, and we respectfully think that cancellation was outside the normal process and the correct underlying facts," Thomas explained.
Seeking to regain its footing in Kenya, Worldcoin implored the committee to investigate the matter and lift the suspension of its activities, which it claimed had hindered its operations in the country.
"We want to request that the committee investigates this matter with a view of creating regulations. The company prays that the committee finds that Worldcoin did not engage in any wrongdoing, and we pray that the suspension be lifted with the necessary legal and regulatory oversight," Blania urged.
One of the key concerns raised during the hearing was the security of the data stored on Amazon servers in the United States.
Tools for Humanity addressed these concerns, explaining that existing technologies did not provide sufficiently detailed iris images and the required level of security.
As a result, they developed a new hardware device known as the Orb, which captures iris data and converts it into a unique iris code.
Tools for Humanity reassured the committee that all images and iris codes were securely stored outside of Kenya.
Data collected from individuals in Kenya before the suspension of Worldcoin operations was transferred to South Africa and the European Union, with iris codes being stored in the United States.
In addition to data security concerns, MPs questioned why Tools for Humanity had failed to register as a business entity before engaging in data mining activities. Scott Thomas clarified that since April 2022, they had operated as data controllers in compliance with legal requirements.
He referenced Cabinet Secretary for ICT Eliud Owalo's statement, made as recently as August 2nd of this year, which affirmed that Tools for Humanity was operating within the boundaries of the law.
“We subsequently engaged with the office of data commissioner and secured registration certificate as data controllers, as late as 2nd August this year CS Eliud Owalo said that we were operating within the law,” he said.
The controversy surrounding Worldcoin and Tools for Humanity's data mining activities continues to raise important questions about data privacy and regulation in the digital age. As investigations unfold, the public awaits further clarity on the matter.
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