Worldcoin eyeball scans paused after privacy worries in Spain

Concerns about the technology created by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman could raise suspicions from other global governments after complaints were filed.

A privacy watchdog in Europe has ordered Worldcoin, the company created by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman that scans eyeballs to make digital IDs in exchange for crypto, to cease its operations in Spain for three months amid concerns over what it is doing with users' personal information.

The stated goal of Worldcoin is to give people a form of identification that could never be stolen or duplicated. It says the way it can do this is by creating a "World ID" by scanning someone's eyeballs through "orbs" — devices that capture an image of their irises, the colored parts of the eyes. In exchange, people who sign up get Worldcoin cryptocurrency.

Spain's Agency for Data Protection told Worldcoin's parent company Tools for Humanity Corporation, on Wednesday, to stop collecting personal data and keep hold of all information already collected. The agency said in a statement that it had received various complaints against the company that range from gathering the personal information of minors to not allowing for people to withdraw their consent to sharing personal data.

People have lined up at points where these orbs are placed in various cities in recent months. More than 360,000 people in Spain have signed up for Worldcoin, according to the most recent company data from November.

While Worldcoin argues that the data is used to create a unique, secure form of identification, privacy experts have concerns that the company may use the information in other ways, like personalized marketing. That has led other countries to investigate Worldcoin's operations, including France and Germany.