A crypto project using eye-scanning technology is reportedly under investigation in France just days after launching and signing up over two million users.
According to a new report, Worldcoin (WLD) will be investigated by France’s privacy watchdog, the CNIL, over the legality of its biometric data collection, which involves iris-scanning orbs.
Worldcoin was co-founded by Open AI’s Sam Altman.
CNIL tells Reuters that the legality of Worldcoin’s data collection “seems questionable, as do the conditions for storing biometric data.”
However, the Worldcoin Foundation told Reuters via email that the protocol was “designed to protect individual privacy and has built a robust privacy program” and meets current regulatory requirements.
According to Worldcoin, a new person is verified every eight seconds.
“Since Worldcoin launched, proof of personhood demand has surged. On average, a unique human is now verifying their World ID every 7.6 seconds and new records are being set daily. Thank you for your patience with the project as more work is done to better meet worldwide demand.”
Furthermore, the protocol says it’s using zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs) to protect the privacy of users. ZKPs are cryptographic methods to prove that specific data is true without revealing the data itself.
“When you want to prove you are a unique human, you should be able to do so without revealing personal information about yourself. In the Worldcoin Protocol, ZKPs are used to preserve users’ privacy and avoid cross-application tracking.”
Earlier this week, Worldcoin faced an inquiry from a UK watchdog for similar reasons.
Worldcoin is trading for $2.18 at time of writing, down 0.2% during the last 24 hours.
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