Worldcoin’s Biometric Bonanza Blocked in Indonesia for “Mystery Entity” Shenanigans

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🎉 BREAKING: Indonesia has hit “pause” on World (née Worldcoin) and its shiny WorldID, after the government caught them acting a tad too mysterious for comfort and breaking all manner of digital rules. Imagine turning up to a glamorous party, only to discover it’s actually your neighbour’s dental appointment. Vibes: similar. 🎭🚫

Why all the drama? Well, someone finally noticed that Worldcoin’s local ops were, ahem, not exactly following the whole “laws of the land” thing. Cue the Ministry of Communications and Digital Affairs (Komdigi) doing their best Poirot impersonation—complete with stern faces and urgent press releases.

World: Suspended Like My New Year’s Health Resolutions

So here’s the goss: Komdigi revealed that a certain PT Terang Bulan Abadi was running the Worldcoin show. Tiny glitch: they forgot to actually register as an Electronic System Operator (like forgetting pants at a wedding, but digitally). And, surprise! They were using *somebody else’s* legal creds for paperwork, specifically PT. Sandina Abadi Nusantara. Classic “my dog ate my homework” energy, but with more blockchain.

Alexander Sabar, official overlord at Digital Space Supervision, confirmed that a flood of community whispers tipped off authorities. Komdigi’s solution: call for a good old-fashioned meeting (read: calmly confiscate all biscuits and force clarifications) under the full, stony glare of Indonesian regulations. No Orb scans required, just regular human eyeballs. 👀

“This freezing is a preventive measure to prevent potential risks to the community. We will also summon PT. Terang Bulan Abadi for official clarification in the near future,” said Alexander Sabar. (Presumably while resisting the urge to add, “And don’t bring your Orb.”)

Can’t make this stuff up. World (formerly Worldcoin—because why stop at one identity crisis?) was dreamed up by Sam Altman of OpenAI fame. The whole “scan my iris, give me crypto” schtick runs via The Orb, a device that might be a prop from a budget sci-fi movie. The goal: WorldID, a digital ID for everyone, everywhere. Except… currently not in Indonesia, unless you count being on the “naughty step.”

Fun fact: World is planning to throw 7,500 Orbs to 6 US cities soon. Because nothing says “community building” like a fleet of blinking sci-fi eyeballs in every neighbourhood. Still, global controversy follows them like an embarrassing tattoo you got at uni.

Indonesia’s Laws: No Nonsense Edition

On home turf, Indonesia’s regulators are busy building their digital fortress. Since 2022’s Personal Data Protection Law, anyone storing biometric bits (like, say, your eyeball patterns) must play by strict new rules. (Bye-bye, wild-west crypto parties.)

All digital wizards must register with Komdigi and promise not to get hacked or, worse, swap paperwork with the next-door business. Cryptocurrency? That’s Bappebti’s turf, and they want regular homework, thank you very much. The Worldcoin freeze is just Komdigi flexing its regulatory muscles, lest things descend into digital chaos.

The moral here? If you plan to hoover up people’s eyeball data and hand out internet funny-money, at least use your own paperwork and bring an actual registration certificate. To quote absolutely nobody, “Trust is built on transparency and not spaghetting around with someone else’s ID card.”

Meanwhile, WLD token holders probably feel slightly less wealthy today: price down a dramatic 0.56% at $0.9477—hardly Titanic-level, but enough to ruin brunch. 🍳

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2025-05-05 10:51