Dagoretti South MP John Kiarie speaks during a meeting with Ministry of Information, Communications, and Digital Economy/HANDOUT
MPs have demanded clarity and accountability from the Ministry of Information, Communications, and Digital Economy over the status of biometric data collected by Worldcoin, following recent High Court ruling ordering its deletion.
During a session with ministry officials, MPs from the Departmental Committee on Communication, Information and Innovation pressed for answers on whether Worldcoin has complied with the court order and how the government intends to verify the deletion of sensitive data.
“Where are we on this? Who deletes the data? Is it Worldcoin or the Communications Authority (CA)?” asked Keiyo South MP Gideon Kimaiyo.
Dagoretti South MP John Kiarie echoed the concerns, questioning the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner’s (ODPC) ability to confirm the data has been purged.
“How will you ensure the data is deleted? How will you verify that Worldcoin doesn’t utilise it later?” Kiarie pressed.
Officials from the Data Protection Commission told the committee that they had held an initial review meeting and received an affidavit from Worldcoin claiming the data was deleted in 2023. However, they noted that independent verification of the deletion is still ongoing.
The session had initially been convened to discuss the Budget Estimates for the 2025/2026 Financial Year but shifted focus to data protection concerns in light of the court’s directive.
The High Court ruling, issued on May 5, found Worldcoin guilty of violating Kenya’s data protection laws by collecting biometric data—such as iris scans—without prior authorisation.
Justice Roselyne Aburili, in her judgment, ordered the company to permanently delete all biometric data collected from Kenyans within seven days.
The court also found that Worldcoin failed to carry out a mandatory Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA), as required under Kenya’s Data Protection Act of 2019, and did not register as a data processor with the ODPC before launching its operations.
In addition to mandating data deletion, the court prohibited Worldcoin from collecting or processing any further biometric data in Kenya unless it fully complies with legal requirements moving forward.
MPs are now demanding that the Ministry and relevant oversight agencies provide concrete evidence that Kenyans’ data has been effectively safeguarded and permanently erased, warning that failure to act decisively could undermine public trust in digital safety and the rule of law.
