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REUTERS/Annegret Hilse/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSummaryCompanies CNIL's checks took place on WednesdayWorldcoin is new project of ChatGPT founderPARIS, Aug 31 (Reuters) - France's data watchdog carried out "checks" at Worldcoin's Paris office this week, amid global regulatory pressure on the digital currency firm co-founded by ChatGPT-founder Sam Altman. France's CNIL watchdog said in July it was investigating Worldcoin as the legality of its biometric data "seemed questionable". "Checks took place at the Worldcoin offices," a CNIL spokesperson said on Thursday, confirming an earlier Politico report that the visit took place on Wednesday. Worldcoin requires users to provide their iris scans in exchange for a digital ID and, in some countries, in exchange for free cryptocurrency. The Worldcoin Foundation, a Cayman Islands-based entity, told Reuters via email: "The team at Worldcoin welcomes any opportunity to address questions regarding the project’s purpose and technology."

Persons: Ricardo Macieira, Annegret, PARIS, Sam Altman, France's, Worldcoin, Sudip Kar, Martin Coulter, Alexander Smith, Mark Potter Organizations: REUTERS, ChatGPT, Politico, Worldcoin, Worldcoin Foundation, Microsoft, Thomson Locations: Europe, cryptocurrency, Berlin, Germany, Worldcoin's, Cayman Islands, London

Worldcoin says 2.2 million have signed up, mostly during a trial period over the last two years. Worldcoin raised $115 million from venture capital investors including Blockchain Capital, a16z crypto, Bain Capital Crypto and Distributed Global in a funding round in May. Macieira said Worldcoin would continue rolling out operations in Europe, Latin America, Africa and "all the parts of the world that will accept us." "The idea is that as we build this infrastructure and that we allow other third parties to use the technology." Michael Will, president of the Bavarian regulator, said it would look into whether Worldcoin's system is "safe and stable".

Persons: Medha Singh, Sam Altman, Worldcoin, Ricardo Macieira, Macieira, Michael Will, Will, Rainer Rehak, Web3, Nette Noestlinger, Matthias Baehr, Elizabeth Howcroft, Tomasz Janowski Organizations: WorldCoin, REUTERS, Reuters, Co, Humanity, Blockchain, Bain Capital Crypto, Companies, Bavarian State Office, Data Protection, Union, Weizenbaum Institute, Worldcoin Foundation, Thomson Locations: Bengaluru, India, Britain, France, Germany, Europe, San Francisco, Berlin, Latin America, Africa, Japan, Bavarian, blockchain, Cayman Islands

LONDON, July 31 (Reuters) - A German data watchdog has been investigating OpenAI CEO Sam Altman's Worldcoin project since late last year due to concerns over its large-scale processing of sensitive biometric data, the regulator's president told Reuters. Will said the Bavarian state regulator is the lead authority investigating Worldcoin under the European Union's data protection rules because Tools For Humanity, the company behind Worldcoin, has a German subsidiary there. This leads to a number of risks, including whether users have given explicit consent to their highly-sensitive biometric data being processed on the basis of "sufficient and clear" information, Will said. Privacy campaigners have long raised concerns about the wide-scale collection and storage of biometric data, which could increase surveillance or target certain demographic groups. France's privacy watchdog told Reuters on Friday that the legality of Worldcoin's data collection "seems questionable".

Persons: Sam Altman's Worldcoin, Worldcoin, Michael Will, Will, Elizabeth Howcroft, Louise Heavens Organizations: Reuters, Bavarian State Office, Data Protection, Humanity, Worldcoin, Thomson Locations: Bavarian, German, Cayman Islands, France, Germany, Spain

LONDON, July 28 (Reuters) - France's privacy watchdog CNIL said on Friday it is aware of ChatGPT-founder Sam Altman's Worldcoin project and that the legality of its biometric data collection "seems questionable". CNIL, the French watchdog, said in response to a Reuters question on Worldcoin "The legality of this collection seems questionable, as do the conditions for storing biometric data." The Worldcoin Foundation is a Cayman Islands-based entity which describes itself as a "steward of the Worldcoin protocol". "The Worldcoin Foundation complies with all laws and regulations governing the processing of personal data in the markets where Worldcoin is available," it said. The project is supervised in the European Union by the Bavarian State Office for Data Protection Supervision, the Worldcoin Foundation said.

Persons: CNIL, Sam Altman's, Worldcoin, Elizabeth Howcroft, Amanda Cooper, Jane Merriman, Louise Heavens Organizations: Reuters, Bavarian, Worldcoin, European Union, Office, Data Protection, Thomson Locations: Bavarian, Germany, Cayman Islands, European

In response to CNBC's request for comment, Worldcoin said:"The Worldcoin Foundation complies with all laws and regulations governing the processing of personal data in the markets where Worldcoin is available, including the General Data Protection Regulation ("GDPR") and the UK Data Protection Act. From its inception, Worldcoin was designed to protect individual privacy. The project has implemented privacy-centric design and has built a robust privacy program, conducting a rigorous Data Protection Impact Assessment and responding timely to individual requests to delete their personal data."

Persons: Worldcoin Organizations: General Data Protection, Protection

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