Deception, exploited workers & cash handouts: Worldcoin’s first ½ million users

Worldcoin, a project of San Francisco-based Tools for Humanity, collected iris scans and other biometric data from its first roughly 450,000 users in 24 countries, and MIT Technology Review's investigation found wide gaps between the company's privacy messaging and what users experienced. The investigation reported that representatives used deceptive marketing, collected more personal data than the company acknowledged, and failed to obtain meaningful informed consent. Orb operators are paid commissions in the stablecoin Tether for each person they register and work without contracts or guaranteed pay, according to a company spokesperson. Worldcoin said new users earn at least $15 for the scan and $5 more on wallet login, though the total later changed to $25 for later recruits.