Worldcoin receives order to cease operations in Hong Kong – DiarioBitcoin

The measure comes after an investigation carried out by the CPDC since the end of last year. The agency determined that worldcoin incurs violations of data protection laws, so they must close operations locally.

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• The CPDC indicated that worldcoin must suspend operations in Hong Kong
• This is because the collection of user data violates local laws.
• The agency is conducting an investigation against worldcoin since the end of last year
• This new fact adds to the problems it has been facing worldcoin in various countries

worldcoin, the project led by Tools for Humanity for the creation of identity mechanisms based on eye scanning, could be facing regulatory problems in Hong Kong, as authorities ordered it to cease operations due to violations of data protection laws.

They request cessation of operations worldcoin in Hong Kong

According to several reports, the ruling was made by Office of the Personal Data Privacy Commissioner (PCPD), which warned about the violations involved in the operations of worldcoin at the local level, especially when collecting biometric data from users.

In a statement sent by the PCPD, The organization indicated:

The Privacy Commissioner has sent a compliance notice to the Worldcoin Foundation, ordering it to cease all operations of the Worldcoin project in Hong Kong to scan and collect images… and faces of the public, using iris scanning devices.

As detailed in the document, the PCPD carried out an investigation into Worldcoin Foundation between December 2023 and January 2024, for which members of its staff carried out 10 covert visits to six of the project facilities. Later they returned to said locations with court orders and carried out the corresponding investigations.

“The research results revealed that Worldcoin project participants needed to allow the relevant organization to collect their face and iris images through iris scanning to verify their humanity,” indicated the PCDC, pointing out that the Foundation registered some 8,302 people in this way during its operations in Hong Kong, thereby violating some current regulations.

More problems for worldcoin

This new request by the PCPD in Hong Kong adds to the problems it has had worldcoin in several countries.

Currently, the project continues to face operational problems in a significant number of countries, among which Argentina, South Korea stand out.France, Germany and Hong Kong, where authorities are carrying out investigations, while its operations have already been suspended in Kenya, Brazil, India, Portugal, Spain and other latitudes.

Due to the complaints, worldcoin has made significant efforts to demonstrate that they guarantee user privacy. They recently published the results of an audit, where they make it clear that they do not store personal information after eye scanning.

Last week, the team Worldcoin Foundation announced the launch of a new open source multi-party computing system that it says can improve the protection of sensitive information, including data generated when people sign up for the project.

Article by Angel Di Matteo / DailyBitcoin

Picture of Unsplash, edited with Canva

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