The UK, Germany, and France have launched investigations on the multi-million dollar project of Dam Altman of Open AI.

Why is this happening now?

What is wrong with Worldcoin?

Is there anything fishy?

Read on if you want to know why.

First, it's important to know that #Worldcoin is an iris biometric cryptocurrency project developed by Tools for Humanity, a tech firm managed by Sam Altman, Max Novendstern, and Alex Blania.

The project which was founded in 2019, has attracted the attention of investors such as Andreessen Horowitz, Khosla Ventures, Mulycoun Capital, and more which raised a total of $125 million in 2022.

Leveraging the Ethereum blockchain, Worldcoin offers a unique authentication method called World ID, using an orb-shaped iris scanner. 

Apart from a global identity vision for all, it also wants to create a universal income system for everyone using its WLD crypto token.

Before its launch, it had garnered more than 2 million signups. While it's posed to expand around the world to several nations, there have been some concerns expressed by governments on the safety of the project.

The UK

From the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), a British privacy regulator, a warning was released about Worldcoin, particularly regarding its collection of biometric data. 

The ICO called on organizations involved in processing "high-risk" data, like Worldcoin, to undertake a comprehensive Data Protection Impact Assessment before initiating any operations.

Before the launch of Worldcoin, it appears it had not gone through such a process. If it has, then no information about it has been shared, hence the alarm raised by the ICO.

Furthermore, the ICO states that Worldcoin's activities must be carried out with the full consent of individuals who can also decide to opt out of the system whenever they want to without any consequences.

So far, from research, I'd say that no one is coerced to be part of the platform. Individuals who come to register stand in lines based on pictures I've seen while their data is captured.

What I cannot verify for now is that there are consequences for anyone who wants to leave. 

Also, I think that the crypto token is also another peek that seems to be bait for people to want to be part of the project.

France and Germany

In the same week that the UK disclosed its investigation, France and Germany also made known theirs.

According to CNIL, the legality of the Worldcoin project is highly questionable, especially as it relates to the collection and storage of biometric data. 

This issue discovered by France made it launch its investigation which has welcomed Bavarian state authority in Germany. 

The two bodies are coordinating their investigations on Worldcoin to make sure it does not go against data privacy rules and other concerns the authorities have.

US 

Worldcoin is not yet available in the US. Of course, there is no doubt for me that the US has a lot to grapple with to focus on such a project.

The SEC is still trying to overturn the judgment of XRP not regarded as a security. There are still concerns related to approving Bitcoin ETFs submitted by the big boys such as BlackRock.

First security audit

As concerns are spreading, it's also good to note that Worldcoin has released its first security audit to boost its confidence in the market.

In the audit carried out by Nethermind and Least Authority, some issues were noticed and relayed to Worldcoin.

Suggestions were also given to resolve the issues which were related to the security of the system. While more of the suggestions have been accepted, there are still others that are pending.

Will they be implemented?

Was the release of the audit timely to quench the concerns of nations about the project?

WLD token?

As these investigations are ongoing, I see signs of further investigations coming on especially as the result of the current investigations linger.

No nation wants to risk the security of its country. And like Jack Dorsey of Block and Vitalik Buterin of Ethereum have said, the Worldcoin project seems too massive and centralized to be controlled by one organization.

Vitalik has criticized the system used by the project and suggested a more diverse and open structure.

In the midst of all these, $WLD seems a little stable after rising from $1.8 to more than $3 within hours that its mainnet went live.

Currently, it sits at $2.2 and has been ranging between $2 and $2.50 for more than 70% of its existing time.

The question now is this, if these countries find faults with the system, will there be a massive dump?

If there are no faults, will we see a pump?