- Worldcoin announced that Orb Operators responsible for iris scanning will no longer receive payments in USDC and will transition to receiving WLD tokens as part of a larger strategy.
- Worldcoin’s launch has garnered mixed opinions in the crypto community, but token holders and trading have surged despite the issues.
- Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin raised concerns about Worldcoin’s design, while Kenya, France, Germany, and the UK are investigating its data practices.
Worldcoin, a cryptocurrency project based on iris biometrics founded by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, announced that it will switch operator rewards from USDC stablecoins to its WLD tokens on October 24. The move intends to increase the circulating supply of WLD tokens in the open market.
Reward Token Switch
In an announcement, Worldcoin stated that Orb Operators–those tasked with scanning people’s irises– will no longer be paid in USDC as of November. Worldcoin said the move to pay orb operators entirely in WLD was part of a “transitional phase”.
“In November 2023, the Worldcoin Foundation expects that the transition process will be completed such that all Operators will receive WLD going forward,” the release reads.
Accordingly, the firm explained that the WLD token was initially introduced with a relatively limited circulating supply of slightly over 100 million WLD. The decision was made to facilitate the creation of a network encompassing as many individuals as possible.
“To achieve this, the majority of the WLD token supply will be given to new and existing users in the form of user grants over the years to come,” it added.
USDC is a stablecoin that is pegged to the US dollar. It is designed to maintain a stable value and is often used for trading and transferring value within the cryptocurrency ecosystem.
Surge in Transactions
Since its launch last July 24, Worldcoin has gained several opinions both positive and negative from the crypto community. Consequently, the holders and trading of the tokens still surged despite the issues.
Following the launch of Worldcoin application and token, Optimism, a Layer-2 blockchain, has outperformed Arbitrum in daily transactions for the first time in six months, registering 844,290 transactions on July 25 compared to Arbitrum’s 630,534 transactions, according to Dune Analytics.
Worldcoin has now amassed over 250,000 holders, following an airdrop that rewarded users for participating in eye scans at specific global locations.
Currently, as per the CoinGecko data, WLD is valued at $1.53 and is down by 4.7% for the last 24 hours. As of writing, the token’s market capitalization is $205,549,545 and is ranked #147—ranked #133 after its launch— on CoinGecko.
Ethereum Founder Concerns on Worldcoin
Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin has identified four “major issues” with the Worldcoin project’s design.
In a blog post, he expressed that he believes a reliable proof-of-personhood system like Worldcoin holds value but highlights significant risks in its development. He expresses concerns about privacy, accessibility, centralization, and security issues associated with the use of World IDs based on iris scanning.
“It’s important to distinguish between (i) issues specific to choices made by Worldcoin, (ii) issues that any biometric proof of personhood will inevitably have, and (iii) issues that any proof of personhood in general will have,” he noted.
While acknowledging potential solutions, Buterin suggests collaboration with other proof-of-personhood projects to address decentralization, accessibility, and protection against fake users.
Kenya’s ODPC Advisory
While Worldcoin is not available in the United States, it is likewise available in several other nations. Immaculate Kassait, Kenya’s first Data Commissioner, and the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC) have issued an advisory to its citizens to be cautious as they continue to engage with the digital identification platform.
According to a report, the ODPC stated that it was aware that Worldcoin had been launched in the country and that it was processing sensitive personal data in a way that required the company to demonstrate proper safeguards under the Data Protection Act, 2019.
“As the ODPC conducts its assessment of Worldcoin’s practices to ensure compliance with the law, Kenyans are urged to ensure that they receive proper information before disclosing any personal or sensitive data… Individuals are advised to thoroughly inquire about how their data will be used,” the ODPC wrote.
France and Germany Probe
The Commission Nationale Informatique & Libertés (CNIL), the French Data Protection Agency, is conducting an investigation on Worldcoin for “questionable” data collection practices.
The investigation is being conducted in collaboration with Bavarian privacy regulators, who have primary responsibility under EU law.
The probe is focused on the scanning of retinas, which Worldcoin uses to prevent individuals from claiming crypto rewards multiple times. CNIL expressed concerns about the legality of this data collection and the preservation of biometric data.
UK ICO Advisory
In a report from Decrypt, the United Kingdom confirmed that it also has its eyes on the controversial project.
The UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), has advised that organizations, including Worldcoin, must conduct a Data Protection Impact Assessment before processing “high-risk” data, a significant aspect of Worldcoin’s operations.
The ICO emphasized the need for consensual and freely given participation in Worldcoin’s activities, allowing individuals to withdraw from the project without consequences. The ICO stated that it is investigating Worldcoin’s launch in the U.K. and has the authority to impose fines of up to £17.5 million ($22.5 million) or 4% of a company’s global turnover in case of serious data breaches.
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This article is published on BitPinas: Worldcoin Surge in Transactions, Several Concerns Still Persist
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