Foreign and Diaspora Affairs Cabinet Secretary(CS) Alfred Mutua has called upon Kenyans not to be used as Guinea Pigs in the World Coin cryptocurrency project.
Mutua underscored the need for Kenyans to be wary of their data being collected.
“Let us all support the stoppage of Kenyans being used as Guinea Pigs and their data being harvested,” he said.
This comes shortly after the government suspends any World Coin activities in the country for security reasons, which has seen more than 350,000 people sign up.
In a statement, Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki said the suspension will remain in effect until relevant agencies certify the absence of any security risks.
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"Relevant security, financial services and data protection agencies have commenced inquiries and investigations to establish the authenticity and legality of the aforesaid activities, the safety and protection of the data being harvested, and how the harvesters intend to use the data," read part of the statement.
Many people rushed to register with the company by having their eyes scanned for a promised amount of money.
Worldcoin, owned by American Artificial Intelligence (AI), is registered by having an individual scan their iris and receive 25 free WLD. The tokens are currently valued at Kes 7,786.
Data Commissioner Immaculate Kassait said the commission is assessing Worldcoin's practices to ensure compliance with the law.
The project by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has been heavily criticised over privacy concerns. Still, the company's website says the project is "completely private" and that data is deleted or a user can opt to have it stored in encrypted form.
