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Worldcoin: What Is It, How Does It Work & Criticism And Concerns Over Its Ambitious Goals And Practices

(CTN NEWS) – After an extensive three-year development phase, the digital ID platform known as Worldcoin was officially launched on Monday. Sam Altman, the co-founder and CEO of OpenAI, played a key role in bringing Worldcoin to life.

The platform’s primary objective is to offer users a verified digital identity along with a specially designed cryptocurrency token called Worldcoin (WLD) and a crypto wallet app.

Worldcoin highlights that the rapid advancements in artificial intelligence have created a challenge in distinguishing content originating from real humans or AI entities on the internet.

To address this confusion, the company proposes the implementation of a digital passport system based on what it terms “proof of personhood.”

In a tweet, Sam Altman explained the core mission: “The goal is simple: A global financial and identity network based on proof of personhood.

This feels especially important in the AI era. I’m hopeful Worldcoin can contribute to conversations about how we share access, benefits, and governance of future AI systems.”

Worldcoin’s platform verifies a user’s identity through iris scanning, creating personalized and secure identification codes.

These codes are stored on a decentralized blockchain, ensuring they cannot be duplicated or manipulated to generate false identities or facilitate fraudulent activities.

During its beta testing phase, the company successfully onboarded more than 2 million users. Now, Worldcoin plans to expand scanning operations to numerous cities in 20 countries worldwide.

What Is Worldcoin?

Worldcoin, a digital ID platform, has a crucial mission: to offer a convenient and reliable way for individuals worldwide to verify their humanity and distinguish themselves from bots or AI algorithms.

Tools for Humanity, the company behind Worldcoin, was co-founded by Altman, renowned for creating ChatGPT. Ironically, Altman’s involvement in fueling the current AI gold rush has contributed to exacerbating the very issue that Worldcoin aims to address.

Worldcoin has developed its digital passport system by leveraging cryptographic and blockchain tools commonly used in the cryptocurrency realm. Alongside this system, it also supports the WLD crypto token and a payments platform.

How Does Worldcoin Work?

World ID: Verifying Humanness with Privacy

At the core of Worldcoin’s platform lies “World ID,” a revolutionary concept that allows users to verify their humanness online while safeguarding their privacy. This unique “proof of personhood” is created through the use of the Orb, an iris-scanning device.

World ID Creation: The IrisCode

The Orb scans a user’s iris, capturing its distinct pattern, and generates an exclusive identification code known as the IrisCode.

Unlike conventional identification methods, the IrisCode remains detached from personal information, ensuring that each user possesses only one World ID.

Efficient and Secure Process

After iris scanning and anonymous IrisCode creation, the Orb issues the World ID while permanently deleting the iris image. Crucially, users are not required to undergo iris scanning repeatedly for identity verification.

Each World ID is then stored on the Worldcoin blockchain, and users utilize a cryptographically secure app for identification purposes.

World ID Reach: Global Presence

Worldcoin’s Orbs are already available in numerous cities worldwide, including Hong Kong, Tokyo, Singapore, Seoul, Paris, Lisbon, Mexico City, São Paulo, Nairobi, New York, and San Francisco, among others.

World App: Preserving Privacy and Empowering Access

The “World App” serves as a repository for users’ World IDs, safeguarding privacy while granting access to an expanding range of decentralized finance applications.

Beyond being a crypto wallet, the app’s primary function is to securely store user credentials for seamless verification on third-party applications.

Wide Crypto Support

In addition to World IDs, the app supports popular cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and USDC, with plans to incorporate more cryptocurrencies in the future.

WLD Cryptocurrency Token: Unleashing Platform Benefits

Upon World ID creation and World App download, users gain access to the WLD cryptocurrency token.

Distribution and Trading

WLD was initially distributed to beta program participants and received a substantial airdrop during the platform’s official launch. Major exchanges like KuCoin and Binance have listed WLD for trading.

Total Supply and Circulation

According to the Worldcoin white paper, a total of 10 billion WLD will be issued over 15 years. Currently, there are 143 million WLD in circulation, with 43 million allocated to verified World App users and 100 million distributed to market makers to facilitate trading.

Worldcoin Faces Criticism and Concerns Over Its Ambitious Goals and Practices

Since its launch, Worldcoin has encountered significant criticism and skepticism regarding its ambitious objectives and questionable methods.

Vitalik Buterin’s Concerns

Notably, Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin voiced his reservations about Worldcoin in a blog post. He raised concerns over the potential information harvested through iris scans, suggesting that the company may not be fully transparent about its data collection practices.

Furthermore, Buterin expressed worries that someone could exploit the iris scanning system to ascertain whether an individual possesses a World ID.

MIT Technology Review’s Allegations

An article published in April 2022 by MIT Technology Review accused Worldcoin of employing deceptive marketing tactics, undisclosed data collection practices, and inadequate informed consent procedures.

The allegations cast doubt on the platform’s commitment to safeguarding user privacy.

Worldcoin’s Rebuttal

In response to the MIT Technology Review’s criticisms, Worldcoin issued a comprehensive 25-page rebuttal. The company vehemently denied being a data-centric enterprise and emphasized that their business model does not involve exploiting or selling users’ personal data.

According to Worldcoin, their sole interest lies in verifying a user’s uniqueness, ensuring they have not previously signed up for the platform, rather than identifying their personal information.

Criticism Regarding Platform Promotion in Developing Regions

Worldcoin faced additional scrutiny for heavily promoting its platform in the developing world. A significant number of new users, particularly from Asia and Africa, raised concerns about potential exploitation and ethical implications of such targeted outreach.

Controversial Investment by Sam Bankman-Fried

Adding to the controversy, Worldcoin received investment in an early funding round from Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of the now-defunct crypto exchange FTX.

The association with a figure known for the failure of a prominent crypto exchange raised eyebrows within the community.

Despite the criticism and controversies, Worldcoin continues to forge ahead with its mission to provide a verified digital identity to individuals worldwide, while grappling with the need to address concerns raised by industry experts and the public.

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Tech

US: A Judge Mandates that Google Allow Competing App Stores to Access Android

Google

(VOR News) – The ruling is that Google, the greatest technology firm in the world, is required to make its Android smartphone operating system available to merchants that supply applications that are in direct rivalry with Google’s. This decision was reached by a judge in the United States of America.

The Android Play store, which is owned and operated by Google, was found to be an example of an illegal monopoly arrangement by a jury in the state of California on Monday. The finding was reached by a jury. Monday is the day that this decision was come to.

An earlier federal judge ruled Google’s search engine illegal.

This finding, which came after that decision, has forced the company to suffer yet another setback. As a result of the corporation having already encountered its initial obstacle, this decision has been established. This particular decision was made by the judge during the month of August, when the month was in progress.

In light of the fact that the decision was made, what exactly does it mean that the choice was accepted?

In accordance with the verdict, Google is obligated to make it possible for users to download Android app stores that are offered by third-party competitors. For a period of three years, the corporation is prohibited from imposing restrictions on the usage of payment mechanisms that are integrated into the application.

In addition, it is important to keep in mind that Google does not possess the right to impose restrictions on the utilization of ways to make payments online.

Additionally, the verdict makes it unlawful for Google to give money to manufacturers of smartphones in order to preinstall its app store. Smartphone manufacturers are prohibited from doing so.

Furthermore, it prevents Google from the possibility of sharing the revenue that is generated by the Play store with other companies that are in the industry of delivering mobile applications.

In addition to this, the court has mandated the establishment of a technical committee that will be made up of three different people chosen at random.

The committee will be responsible for monitoring the implementation of the reforms and finding solutions to any disagreements that may occur as a consequence of the implementation of the reforms while they are being implemented. This task will fall under the committee’s purview so that it may fulfill its duties.

However, certain components were allowed to be put into action until July 1st, despite the fact that the judge’s statement suggested that the ruling would take effect on November 1st. The statement was the basis for the ruling, which ultimately became effective.

Particularly, I wanted to know what Google’s reaction would be.

There is a fact that Google does not adhere to this directive, which has been brought to their attention. This document argued that the alterations that the judge had ordered to be made would “cause a range of unintended consequences that will harm American consumers, developers, and device makers.”

The judge had ordered the modifications to be implemented. The alterations were to be carried out as indicated by the judge’s ruling. The judge made it clear that he expected these revisions to be carried out in accordance with his guidance.

The company’s regulatory affairs vice president, Lee-Anne Mulholland, provided the following statement: “We look forward to continuing to make our case on appeal, and we will continue to advocate for what is best for developers, device manufacturers, and the billions of Android users around the world.”

On average, over seventy percent of the total market for smartphones and other mobile devices is comprised of mobile devices that are powered by the Android operating system. Both smartphones and other small mobile devices are included in this category.

In the event that the Play app store continues to be shown on the home page and that other Google applications are pre-installed prior to the installation of the Android application, smartphone manufacturers are entitled to install the Android application at no cost at their discretion.

Additionally, the Android application can be installed on devices that are manufactured for smartphones.

SOURCE: DWN

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Over The Planned “Link Tax” Bill, Google Threatens to Remove NZ News Links.

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Tech

WhatsApp Now Features a “Mention” Tool for Status Updates and Stories.

WhatsApp

(VOR News) – Those who use WhatsApp now have the ability to mention other people in their stories or status updates as a consequence of a feature that was only recently enabled on the platform.

Previous to this point, this capability was not available. It wasn’t until quite recently that this capability became available to the public.

According to the information that was provided by the company, users now have the opportunity to tag close friends in their stories, and the person who is mentioned will have the option to go back and re-share an earlier version of that story. This information was provided by the company. The corporation was kind enough to reveal this information to us.

Because of a new feature that has been added to the WhatsApp app, users now have the opportunity to like individual stories and status updates.

This capability was previously unavailable to WhatsApp users.

A significant amount of progress has been made in this context. Alternative readers now have the chance to “like” a work, which is comparable to liking a post on Facebook. This feature was introduced in recent years. When compared to the past, this is a tremendous shift.

At one point in time, viewers were only permitted to observe the total number of views that a particular story had gotten. These restrictions were eliminated in later versions of the software.

Additionally, it is essential that the likes and reactions to a story be kept anonymous during the entire process. One of the factors that contributes to the general mystery that surrounds this characteristic is the fact that this is one of the elements.

The person who brought it to the attention of others is the only person who will be able to judge who enjoyed it and who did not care about it. These individuals will be able to make this determination.

A notification will be issued to the individual who was referenced earlier in the sentence and who was named in the story or status update that was discussed. A notification of this nature will be sent to the individual via WhatsApp.

This message will be sent to the user in question whenever that person makes a reference to another person while they are in the process of elaborating on a narrative or updating their status. You will receive a notification alerting you that you have been tagged in the narrative.

This notification will be delivered to the person who receives this message. In addition, students will be provided with the opportunity to re-share the tale for themselves.

It is important to note that if the names of individuals who have been referenced in a narrative or a status update are included in any of these, then the names of those individuals will not be accessible to any third party through any of these. In light of the fact that the identities of those individuals will be concealed from public disclosure, this is the condition that will be required.

While WhatsApp recently made the announcement that it will be incorporating this functionality, it is highly likely that not all users will have access to it at the same time.

This is despite the fact that WhatsApp recently made this announcement.

Despite the fact that WhatsApp has only recently made a public announcement that it will move forward with the deployment, this is the situation that has presented itself.

As soon as a short period of time has elapsed, access will be made available to each and every person on the entire world.

Additionally, WhatsApp has hinted that new functionalities might be introduced to the status and updates tab in the future months.

The purpose of these capabilities is to provide users with assistance in maintaining healthy connections with the individuals who play a vital role in their living experiences. This is done in order to give users with support in maintaining close relationships with the folks who are the subject of the inquiry.

It is with the purpose of supporting users in successfully keeping close ties with the individuals in question that this step is taken.

SOURCE: DN

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Over The Planned “Link Tax” Bill, Google Threatens to Remove NZ News Links.

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Tech

Over The Planned “Link Tax” Bill, Google Threatens to Remove NZ News Links.

Google

(VOR News) – Google has sent a strong message to the New Zealand government, threatening to stop boosting local news content should the Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill become law.

The law, put up by the Labour government and backed by the coalition in power at the moment, mandates that digital companies such as Google pay back news organizations for links to their material.

News publishers, on the other hand, charge the tech giant with “corporate bullying.”

Google says this measure may have unanticipated effects.

Google New Zealand’s country director, Caroline Rainsford, voiced her worries that the law, which is being referred to as a “link tax,” is not doing enough to support the media industry in New Zealand right now.

She underlined that Google would have to make major adjustments if the previously mentioned law were to pass, including cutting off links to news articles from its Search, News, and Discover platforms and cutting off financial ties with regional publications.

According to Rainsford, similar legislation has been proposed and approved in other nations including Australia and Canada, but it has not been proven to be effective there and breaches the principles of the open web.

She drew attention to the fact that smaller media outlets will be most negatively impacted, which will limit their capacity to reach prospective audiences.

Google says its alternative options will protect smaller, local media from negative effects.

Conversely, it conveys apprehension regarding the possible fiscal obligations and vagueness of the legislation, which it feels generates an intolerable level of ambiguity for enterprises functioning within New Zealand.

The New Zealand News Publishers Association (NPA) has reacted to Google’s warnings by alleging that the internet behemoth is using coercive tactics.

They specifically contend that the need for regulation stems from the market distortion that Google and other tech giants have created, which has fueled their expansion into some of the most significant corporations in global history.

The legislation aims to create a more equal framework that media businesses can use to negotiate commercial relationships with technological platforms that profit from their content.

New Zealand Media Editors CEO Michael Boggs stated that he was in favor of the bill, citing the fact that Google now makes a substantial profit from material created by regional publications.

He also emphasized that the use of artificial intelligence by Google—which frequently makes references to news articles without giving credit to the original sources—highlights the significance of enacting legislation.

Paul Goldsmith, the Minister of Media and Communications, has stated that the government is now evaluating various viewpoints and is still in the consultation phase.

He stated that the government and Google have been having continuous talks and will keep up these ongoing discussions.

However, not all political parties accept the validity of the Act.

The ACT Party’s leader, David Seymour, has voiced his displeasure of the proposal, saying that Google is a game the government is “playing chicken” with. He threatened the smaller media companies, saying that they would suffer from worse search engine rankings if the internet giant followed through on its promises.

Seymour contended that it is not the government’s responsibility to shield companies from shifts in the market brought about by consumer preferences.

The things that have happened in other nations are similar to what has happened in New Zealand.

Google has agreements with a number of Australian media firms that are in compliance with its News Media Bargaining Code. These agreements contain provisions that permit an annual cancellation of these agreements.

Due to the government’s decision to exempt Google from the Online News Act, the company has committed to supporting news dissemination by contributing annually to the Canadian journalistic community.

The New Zealand measure is consistent with global approaches aimed at regulating the relationships that exist between technology corporations and media organizations.

It’s hard to say what will happen with the Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill as the discussion goes on. Google and the New Zealand media landscape are preparing for what might be a protracted legal battle.

SOURCE: TET

SEE ALSO:

Accenture and NVIDIA Collaborate to Enhance AI Implementation.

 

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