Kenyan High Court Slams Sam Altman's Worldcoin Over Privacy Violations

A Kenyan court has slammed the crypto and identity project, World (formerly Worldcoin), for violating constitutional privacy rights with its biometric data collection practices.

The ruling comes amid growing global scrutiny of the project.

Kenyan High Court Slams Sam Altman’s World Over Privacy Violations

As reported by local media, Justice Aburili Roselyne granted a judicial review application filed by the Katiba Institute. The court ordered the Worldcoin Foundation and its agents to cease all processing of biometric data.

The court also ruled that all previously collected data from Kenyan users should be permanently deleted.

“An order of prohibition [is issued] restraining Worldcoin Foundation and its agents from further processing, collecting or dealing in Biometric data without undertaking (or using an inadequate) Data Protection Impact Assessment… or using consent obtained by inducement of a cryptocurrency — Worldcoin,” Katiba Institute reported, quoting the ruling.

The judge issued a certiorari order, annulling the foundation’s decision to collect and process such data in Kenya. She cited violations of Kenya’s Data Protection Act, 2019.

A third order of mandamus compels the foundation to delete all biometric data obtained within seven days permanently. The court berated Worldcoin for breaching the law in this regard. The Data Protection Commissioner will supervise the implementation of the order.

“High Court orders Worldcoin to delete biometric data collected in Kenya within 7 days,” said local media.

High Court orders Worldcoin to delete all biometric data of Kenyans unlawfully collected using its orb, supervised by the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner pic.twitter.

ICJ Kenya, committed to protecting and promoting human rights, added that the court emphasized the importance of upholding constitutional rights, especially the right to privacy, even in the evolving digital age.

“The Court affirmed that Worldcoin commenced data collection without valid consent from the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC) and without conducting the required DPIA, in breach of Sections 25, 26, 29, 30, and 31 of the Data Protection Act, 2019,” wrote ICJ Kenya

This setback comes nearly two years after the Katiba Institute filed the case in August 2023. The organization, which promotes the implementation of Kenya’s Constitution, challenged Worldcoin’s data collection methods.

Constitutional lawyer Joshua Malidzo Nyawa, who spearheaded the prosecution, did not immediately respond to BeInCrypto’s request for comment.

Worldcoin Collecting Biometric Data From Kenyans

As it happened, Worldcoin offered Kenyans $50 worth of WLD tokens per person. In exchange, they had to volunteer to scan their irises using the Orb device, effectively signing away their biometric data.

The institute argued that this inducement compromised the legitimacy of user consent. In turn, it failed to meet Kenya’s legal thresholds for data protection.

“The owner of Worldcoin, Sam Altman, is banned from collecting this data in his home country, the US, why do we allow him in Kenya,” said parliament majority leader Kimani Ichung’wah.

The ruling is likely to have implications for other jurisdictions where World operates. Similar concerns led to regulatory action in Indonesia, where authorities suspended Worldcoin’s activities for potential breaches of data protection regulations.

Despite growing opposition, the project is pushing ahead in the US. It recently launched in six cities, including Atlanta, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.

These legal developments had a swift impact on investor sentiment. Worldcoin’s native token (WLD) dropped nearly 10% in the past 24 hours. According to BeInCrypto price data, WLD was trading at $0.88 as of this writing.