Seoul, South Korea, Friday, September 27, 2024- Worldcoin Foundation and Tools for Humanity have been fined $850,000 by South Korean authorities for illegally collecting and transferring biometric data.
The Personal Information Protection Commission announced the fine on Thursday, following an investigation into the collection of iris scans from nearly 30,000 users without proper consent or legal basis. The data was also transferred abroad without notifying users, violating local privacy regulations.
In defense, Worldcoin claimed that the iris scans were anonymous, but the commission rejected this argument, emphasizing the unique and immutable nature of the data. Worldcoin has faced scrutiny from regulators worldwide, with South Korea becoming the latest to impose penalties.
Worldcoin, co-founded by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, is a cryptocurrency project that aims to create a global digital identity and financial network. It offers users free tokens in exchange for biometric data, specifically iris scans, which are collected using a device called the “Orb.”
The project’s goal is to establish a decentralized identity system to distinguish humans from bots and provide universal access to financial services.
However, it has faced growing scrutiny from regulators over privacy concerns related to its data collection methods, raising questions about its long-term viability.
