Kenya’s Home Affairs Minister Kithure Kindiki said the government was alarmed by Worldcoin’s activism and its potential implications for security, privacy and the rule of law.
“It is critical that safeguards for public safety and integrity of financial transactions involving so many Kenyan citizens are provided upfront. The government is temporarily banning Worldcoin, as well as any other organization that may similarly collect the data of Kenyan citizens, until the relevant government authorities confirm that there is no risk to the general public,” Kindiki said.
The minister told the press that the government has launched a full investigation into the project and its data collection methods. He also warned that anyone involved in promoting or facilitating the Worldcoin project would be prosecuted.
Earlier, France’s Privacy Protection Service (CNIL) said it doubted the legality of biometric data collection by Worldcoin and saw no economic sense in handing out tokens “simply for being unique.”