The Worldcoin Foundation expressed disappointment over Hong Kong authorities’ decision to ban its data collection efforts over alleged privacy violations, according to a May 23 statement shared with CryptoSlate.
On May 22, Hong Kong’s Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data (PCPD) halted Worldcoin’s data collection activities in the region.
The PCPD alleged that Worldcoin’s collection of facial and iris images of more than 8,000 Hong Kong residents was both unnecessary and excessive. Furthermore, the regulator accused Worldcoin of failing to provide users with adequate information, compromising their ability to give informed consent.
Legitimate operation
A Worldcoin spokesperson confirmed the project’s commitment to legal compliance, including compliance with Hong Kong’s Personal Data Regulation and similar regulations worldwide.
The spokesperson further emphasized that Worldcoin aims to set high standards for privacy protection in preparation for the AI era. The project achieves this through minimal data collection, user control over data, advanced technological measures such as personal data retention, iris code selection and secure multi-party computation.
Consequently, Worldcoin expressed disappointment that Hong Kong regulators had not considered these privacy improvements before imposing a ban on the project.
Meanwhile, Worldcoin’s dissatisfaction mirrors its response to Spain’s data protection agency, which also blocked the Sam Altman-backed company’s data collection efforts. While Worldcoin hinted at possible legal action against Spain, it did not specify whether it would pursue similar action against Hong Kong.
WLD price down
The ongoing controversy surrounding the project in Hong Kong has resulted in significant losses for the WLD token.
WLD is one of them Crypto Slates biggest losers for May 23, down about 5% in the last 24 hours to $4.86 at the time of writing.
This decline reflects a broader market trend, with major digital assets such as Solana and BNB also suffering losses of more than 2% over the same period.