A multi-agency team formed to probe Worldcoin activities in the country has recommended a one-year suspension of its operations in the country.
The freeze on any further collection of data from Kenyans by Tools for Humanity, Data Commissioner Immaculate Kassait said, will remain in force until it complies with specified conditions.
“The company will be allowed to operate once it allows for a security audit, allows the government access to the data, registers with the Business Registration Services (BRS) as well as establish a local representative,” she said.
“It will also be required to carry out a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) and simplify consent and provide clarity on data storage."
She was presenting before the parliamentary Ad hoc committee.
Licences of the companies have since been revoked as part of the recommendations.
It has also suggested that Worldcoin operators seek approval from the Capital Markets Authority (CMA) which will test its products, solutions and services before rollout to the Kenyan market.
The Office of Data Protection Commissioner probed the matter in collaboration with agencies including the Communications Authority of Kenya, the Central Bank of Kenya, the Ministry of ICT and the National Computer and Cybercrime Coordination Committee (NC4).
In a move that is set to hit the crypto company hard, it has been agreed that all WorldApps be taken down from all App stores within the Kenyan region for one year pending the approval of the company.
Kenya is one of the biggest markets globally for cryptocurrency trade with Worldcoin statistics showing that over 600, 000 have so far been registered out of the total 2.2 million users in the world.
On legal reforms, the Taskforce has mandated the ODPC to impose administrative fines on companies doing commercial activities on data collection which is a threat opt national security and the economy.
“KRA to monitor the identified companies for payment of income tax on income from cryptocurrency in accordance to the Finance Act, 2023,” she said.
The Attorney General, Capital Markets Authority and Central Bank of Kenya have been tasked with spearheading regulations of digital assets and cryptocurrency.
In coming up with the recommendations, the team according to Kassait established that consent obtained from Kenyans was insufficient and did not comply with provisions of the Data Protection Act.
“The purposes of collection of personal data varied and included the provision of World ID, provision of Worldcoin, development of, training and testing machine learning models,” the report states.
