Information technology
Age verification for digital ID from Worldcoin is coming
The undated handout from Tools for Humanity GmbH shows iris scanners from Worldcoin. photo
© Christoffer Dalkarls/Worldcoin/Orb/Tools for Humanity/dpa
Only adults are allowed to take part in the controversial Worldcoin crypto project. After complaints about a lack of child protection, the project co-founded by AI star Sam Altman is now taking a closer look.
The controversial cryptocurrency project Worldcoin will in future check whether users are really of legal age. This was announced by the Worldcoin Foundation and the operating company Tools for Humanity in Erlangen. With the age verification, Worldcoin is reacting, among other things, to a ban in Portugal. Two weeks ago, the Portuguese data protection authority suspended Worldcoin’s collection of biometric data nationwide. The ban was primarily justified by the fact that minors would also have had access to the project.
The Worldcoin project offers a forgery-proof digital identity document (“World ID”) with which you can identify yourself as a human being online – in contrast to software robots that Artificial intelligence can be generated. When setting up the “World ID”, interested parties must have their eye irises scanned at special registration centers. To date, more than 4.8 million people in 36 countries have used it.
Iris scan only for adults
The “World ID” is linked to the cryptocurrency “Worldcoin” (WLD), which is distributed in small quantities to regular users. The digital money is also traded on certain crypto exchanges and can be exchanged for currencies such as euros or dollars. The terms and conditions of the project stipulated a minimum age of 18 from the start. In the future, interested parties will have to prove that they are of legal age with an ID before having their iris scanned. However, Worldcoin assured that data such as date of birth or name would still not be recorded or stored.
Participants who want to turn their backs on the project will be able to invalidate their “World IDs” in the future by permanently deleting the iris code, Worldcoin also announced. Critics such as Green Party MP Misbah Khan had previously warned of data protection risks associated with the collection of biometric data, particularly eyeball scanning.
“Proof of humanity is the basis for the usability of the Internet”
The controversial project received support from the former Baden-Württemberg state data protection officer Stefan Brink: “Worldcoin has recognized that in the age of AI, proof of humanity will be the basis for the future usability of the Internet and for numerous economic aspects of the digital world,” explained he renowned data protection lawyer. Anyone who wants to identify themselves as a person on the Internet has so far used means such as state ID cards, which have the disadvantage of identifying the user and disclosing a large amount of other personal data, even though this is not necessary. In contrast, the “World ID” strengthens the possibilities for data protection-compliant online activities.