World launches in Brazil amid legal concerns
On Tuesday, Sam Altman's project World—formerly known as Worldcoin—announced the launch of its human verification program in Brazil. According to a post on x, World ID verification is now available in Brazil.
The World project is being developed by Tools for Humanity (TFH). Altman, who is also the CEO of OpenAI, and Alex Blania co-founded the firm.
As the World Project strengthens its efforts to boost the overall number of signups, Brazil is an important destination. According to 2023 World Bank data, the country has a population of over 215 million and is also relatively crypto-friendly. 93% of Brazilians have either been "victims of identity theft, or know someone who has been impacted," according to a statement from World.
According to its website, World has more than 7.5 million verified World IDs in more than 160 countries. Since September, there has been a roughly one million increase.
Worldcoin faces regulatory scrutiny
Because regulators are concerned about personal privacy, the project has occasionally drawn criticism or had its services banned in various countries. In order to confirm that a person is human, the project must gather biometric information, but it has taken steps to reassure governments and citizens that sensitive information is not stored after the verification process is complete and an ID is issued.
Worldcoin under scrutiny in Hong Kong
In May, Hong Kong authorities ordered the Worldcoin project to cease all operations in the area. The Worldcoin cryptocurrency project posed significant risks to the privacy of personal data, according to a media statement from the Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data (PCPD).
Worldcoin under scrutiny in South Korea
According to a September 2024 report, Worldcoin and its development company, Tools For Humanity, were fined 1.1 billion Korean won ($830,000) by the South Korean Personal Information Protection Commission for allegedly violating laws pertaining to the collection and transfer of personal data.
A fine of 725 million won ($545,000) was imposed on the Worldcoin Foundation for violations in handling confidential data and sending it abroad. Simultaneously, the authorities announced that TFH had been fined 379 million won ($285,133) for breaking their duty in the transfer of data abroad.
Worldcoin under scrutiny in Singapore
An investigation into the alleged illicit trading of Worldcoin assets has been launched by Singapore police, following reports that seven individuals were suspected of offering services for the purchase and sale of these assets.
Worldcoin rebrands
Worldcoin is rebranding to World Network, or just World, according to a previous Whaleinisder news report. The co-founders, Sam Altman and Alex Blania, hosted an exclusive global event in San Francisco in October where World Network, formerly known as Worldcoin, made several groundbreaking announcements.
Along with the rebranding, the project announced that World Chain has launched on the mainnet. As the first blockchain created especially to give human activity and transactions priority, World Chain has over 15 million World ID holders and World App users. The project's Ethereum-secured Layer 2 blockchain network is called World Chain.
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