Kenya Confirms Deletion Of Worldcoin Biometric Data
2026-01-20
CIO Africa
The information displayed in the AIM should not be reported as representing the official views of the OECD or of its member countries.
Kenya's Data Protection Commissioner confirmed that Tools for Humanity, linked to the Worldcoin project, deleted all biometric data collected from Kenyan citizens after a High Court ruling found the AI-powered iris scanning system violated data protection laws and privacy rights. Regulatory intervention followed months of scrutiny and legal action.[AI generated]
Why's our monitor labelling this an incident or hazard?
The event involves the use of AI-enabled biometric data collection systems (Orb devices) that process sensitive personal data (iris scans and facial images) to generate digital identifiers. The misuse and non-compliance with data protection laws, including invalid consent and unauthorized data transfers, constitute violations of fundamental rights under applicable law. The regulatory confirmation of data deletion follows these breaches, indicating that harm occurred and was addressed. Since the AI system's use directly led to violations of rights and regulatory breaches, this is an AI Incident rather than a hazard or complementary information. The event is not unrelated because it clearly involves AI systems and their impact on rights.[AI generated]