This chapter delves into the controversies surrounding the rollout of world coin, including technical issues with iris scanning orbs, data breaches exposing passwords, deceptive practices in signing people up, concerns about privacy laws, and the Kenyan government's ban on world coin. It also explores the investigations by the ICO and countries like France, Germany, and the UK regarding world coin's biometric data collection practices, highlighting the need for faster government regulation of tech companies.
Madeleine Finlay speaks to the Guardian’s technology reporter Hibaq Farah about Worldcoin, a new cryptocurrency offering users tokens in exchange for a scan of their eyeballs. Farah explains what the motives behind the company are, why they think we all need to become ‘verified humans’, and how governments have responded to the project. Help support our independent journalism at
theguardian.com/sciencepod