sam altman, CEO of OpenAI, recognized for his involvement in projects such as ChatGPT, has brought to life a controversial project that has sparked debates in multiple nations. The plan involves the iris scanning of more than two billion individuals through the use of metallic spheres, generating a wave of criticism and concerns.
The initiative, called worldcoinhas unleashed questions regarding privacy, security and misuse of personal data, as explained The country in a report.
The seemingly simple operation consists of installing an app on mobile devices, followed by receiving a QR code. Then, a metallic sphere performs the eye scan, generating a kind of “personality imprint”. This information is linked to the QR code, transforming the application into a digital passport called WorldIDwhich also works as wallet of a cryptocurrency of the same name, Worldcoin.
The eye scanning process is already underway in various countries, including Argentina and Spain, where it is available in 14 shopping centers.
What is attractive about it? The money
The attraction for many people of submitting to this unique verification lies in the promise of receiving money. Prior to the implementation of the project, Altman subcontracted hundreds of external “operators”, who are paid for each iris scanned, especially in regions of the Global South.
In some places, such as Indonesia, incentives such as t-shirts, AirPods and vouchers redeemable for 25 Worldcoins, the value of which has fluctuated. In addition, workshops were organized in educational institutions to perform scans on students, many of them minors.
However, the “money” earned from this activity is not yet convertible, and Worldcoin disclaims responsibility for operators arrested or assaulted due to false incentives or technical glitches. Such a situation has led countries like Kenya to ban registrationsdue to concerns about the authenticity and legality of these operations, as well as the lack of clarity in the consent of users, whose terms of data transfer have not been translated into local languages.
Expert concern
Altman has defended this project arguing that the World ID passport and wallet will be essential in a future where artificial intelligence exceeds human capacity and the unemployed need a universal income. The company behind the initiative, called Tools for Humanity, operates out of a registered foundation in the Cayman Islands, a tax haven.
For some experts, the project presents a peculiar interpretation of the typical capitalist philanthropic narrative. Sofie Henriksen, an anthropologist specializing in the intersection of humanitarian action and big tech, argues that the latter are increasingly using their philanthropic projects as platforms for test new technologies, expand your user base and collect personal data to train algorithms.
This has generated criticism of these companies for appearing to be actors in a type of digital colonialism, by deploying services and applications in developing nations without their approval.
Concern deepens due to biometric data collection, such as iris scanning, which raises additional issues. These dates are immutable and allow remote identification of individuals without their consentwhich could lead to potential abuse and discrimination.
The complaint against Worldcoin
Worldcoin has been denounced before the Argentine government for possible violations of personal data. The complaint, led by the lawyer Daniel Monastersky, a member of Data Governance Latam and director of the Center for Studies in Cybersecurity and Data Protection, has been filed with the Agency for Access to Public Information.
The complaint, according to bio bioargues a possible violation of the National Law for the Protection of Personal Data and the lack of compliance with privacy and security standards in the collection of biometric data.
Although the complaint is not public, the whistleblower has noted that it highlights the “significant risks” posed by the application’s request for biometric data. He also warns about unauthorized access to this information and the possibility of leaks or improper access to the database.
Despite the images that circulate of people waiting for the iris scan in supermarkets in the province of Buenos Aires, Worldcoin has been operating in Argentina for months. However, authorities in other countries have taken similar steps due to concerns about security, storage of sensitive information, facial recognition, and a lack of clear information on security standards.