Kenya has discontinued its investigation into Worldcoin, the cryptocurrency project developed by U.S. artificial intelligence company OpenAI, whose operations were suspended by the government last year.
Co-founded by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, the project was halted in Kenya on August 2, 2024, due to data security concerns following a surge in interest in Nairobi. Worldcoin representatives were summoned to Parliament to address questions regarding the security of the biodata collected from Kenyans.
In a letter dated June 14, the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) informed Coulson Harney LLP, the project’s lawyers, that the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP) had ordered the closure of the case file.
“The DCI expeditiously and objectively investigated an array of allegations into the activities Worldcoin in Kenya in 2022/3 and touching on alleged unlawful collection and transfer of personal sensitive data. The resultant investigation file was forwarded to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions for an independent review and advice,” it reads.
“Upon review of the file, the Director of Public Prosecutions concurred and directed that the file be closed with no further police action.”
Moving forward, the investigative agency advised Worldcoin to ensure it registers with the Registrar of Business Registry and acquire licensing from the Office of the Data Protection Commission (ODPC) and the Communication Authority of Kenya (CAK).
“Ensure Intensive vetting and legal contracting of all third-party vendors within the country,” added the DCI.
In December, government sources informed Citizen Digital that an agreement had been reached to allow Worldcoin to resume operations in Kenya under new guidelines. The Worldcoin project, launched globally on June 24, 2023, faced privacy concerns and questions about the security of the biodata collected from Kenyans, despite its goal of creating a decentralized global currency.
The verification process involved scanning eyeballs through an Orb to issue a digital identity called World ID. Concerns were amplified by the distribution of 25 free cryptocurrency tokens, valued at Ksh.8,256, to new members after verification. The government halted all project activities until relevant agencies could ensure the absence of security risks.
Following the suspension, Alex Blania, the project’s CEO and co-founder with Sam Altman, announced that they and Tools For Humanity (TFH) would pause World ID verifications in Kenya to address government concerns while remaining optimistic about resuming operations. TFH, a global hardware and software company based in Germany, led the initial development of the Worldcoin protocol.
“TFH has paused World ID verifications in Kenya as we continue to work with local regulators to address their questions. We apologize to everyone in Kenya for the delay,” Blania said last August.
“World ID is built for privacy. We look forward to resuming operations while continuing global rollout.”
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki told the Senate last September that the government was conducting a forensic analysis of the hardware components used to collect data from Kenyans for the project.
The security minister said he had yet to be convinced that Worldcoin activities were safe because the company was operating without clearance from the government.
“Citizen data is a sovereignty issue. They harvested data here operating outside the law. I know I run the risk of being told I’m standing in the way of commerce but as a security manager, I need to know who is behind any crypto the source of their investment and who is doing what because if we allow anything that will harm the people of Kenya I will be asked,” he said.
Tools For Humanity revealed that they had been scanning people’s irises in Nairobi and other Kenyan urban centers since 2021 during the project’s pilot phase. By early September, Worldcoin reported that over 635,000 Kenyans had downloaded the crypto app, though 345,000 had not yet verified their identities by scanning their irises.
Worldcoin also faced scrutiny in Europe for potentially violating the strict General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) in EU member states. The United Kingdom’s Information Commission Office announced last year that it would be “making enquiries” about Worldcoin, while France’s privacy watchdog, CNIL, stated that the legality of the project’s biometric data collection “seems questionable.”
