Brazil shuts down World ID’s eye-scanning crypto payouts in a battle over biometric privacy
Brazil shuts down World ID’s eye-scanning crypto payouts in a battle over biometric privacy
Brazil’s National Data Protection Authority (ANPD) has ordered the company behind the World ID project to stop offering crypto or financial incentives for collecting biometric data from its citizens.
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In a 24 January notice, the ANPD directed Tools for Humanity (TFH), the company behind the eye-scanning crypto initiative World Network (formerly Worldcoin), to stop serving Brazilian users from 25 January.
This decision follows an investigation that started in November 2024 after the launch of the World ID project in Brazil.
ANPD investigates biometric data handling
The ANPD, through the General Coordination of Inspection (CGF), began examining the handling of biometric data for the development of the World ID in November 2024.
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After a thorough examination, the ANPD’s enforcement division believes that offering crypto as compensation could compromise the validity of user consent for collecting sensitive biometric data.
Under Brazilian law, consent for processing sensitive personal data, such as biometrics, has to be free, informed, clear, and offered for defined purposes.
The ANPD expressed concerns that financial incentives offered by TFH could influence people’s decision-making, particularly those in vulnerable situations.
World Network was launched in 2019 by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. It uses iris biometrics from Tools for Humanity, based in San Francisco and Berlin to create a universal digital identity and financial network via an advanced “orb.”
The Brazilian authorities were worried about the irreversible nature of biometric data collection, and the inability to delete collected information once provided.
Precaution in other countries
Brazil isn’t the only country worried about data collection by the World Network. In December 2024, Germany’s data protection authority initiated corrective action.
It required World Network to align with the EU’s General Data Protection Regulations regarding biometric data handling.
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