Brazil bans Worldcoin from giving crypto for eye scans — TradingView News

Brazil’s data protection watchdog has ordered the company behind the biometrics for the World ID project to stop offering crypto or financial compensation for collecting biometric data from its citizens.

The National Data Protection Authority (ANPD) on Jan. 24 ordered Tools for Humanity (TFH), which is behind the eye-scanning crypto project World Network, formerly Worldcoin, to stop providing services to Brazilians from Jan. 25 after an investigation that began in November following the launch of the World ID project in Brazil.

The ANPD’s enforcement division reported that it determined offering crypto as compensation could compromise the validity of user consent for collecting sensitive biometric data.

World Network was co-founded in 2019 by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. It uses iris biometrics developed by San Francisco and Berlin-based Tools for Humanity with the aim of developing a universal digital identity and financial network by scanning people’s irises using a futuristic “orb.”

Under Brazilian law, consent for processing sensitive personal data must be free, informed, unequivocal and specifically given for particular purposes.

The ANPD was concerned about financial incentives potentially influencing people’s decision-making, especially those in vulnerable situations. It also expressed concerns about the sensitive nature of biometric data, the irreversible nature of the data collection, and the inability to delete collected biometric data once provided.

In December, Germany’s data protection authority issued corrective measures for the digital identity project over its handling of biometric data ordering World to implement measures to comply with the EU’s General Data Protection Regulations.

The native token, WLF, has fallen more than 8% over the past 24 hours, dropping below $2 at the time of writing. The token, which was launched to power the network in July 2023, has declined 83% from its March all-time high of $11.74, according to CoinGecko.