Thailand’s Personal Data Protection Committee (PDPC) ordered Worldcoin (now World) to immediately suspend operations and delete biometric data collected from 1.2 million citizens.
The regulator ruled that the project’s core model—scanning irises in exchange for WLD tokens—violates the country’s Personal Data Protection Act.
WLD traded at $0.64 on the news, down 95% from its all-time high.
The Crackdown
The order targets TIDC Worldverse, the local operator for Sam Altman’s digital identity project. According to the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society, the company failed to obtain valid consent and lacked transparency regarding data storage.
Key to the ruling? The exchange of sensitive biometric data for financial incentives (crypto) was deemed “disproportionate” and illegal under Thai law.
This follows an October 24 raid on a Bangkok facility, where authorities arrested staff for allegedly operating an unlicensed digital asset exchange. The project has now been removed from the country’s active location list.
“We Complied”
World Thailand pushed back, claiming they followed all local regulations.
“This decision comes despite our compliance with local laws and regulations,” the operator stated on X. “This pause negatively impacts millions of Thais who adopted this technology to protect themselves from scams.”
The team intends to challenge the order, but for now, the Orbs are dark.
Global Headwinds
Thailand joins a growing list of jurisdictions rejecting the “proof of humanity” protocol.
Regulators in Germany, Kenya, and the Philippines have already launched investigations or suspensions citing privacy risks. The price of WLD has struggled to recover amid the mounting legal pressure, currently sitting flat on the 24-hour chart.
