Black Mirror in real life? An overview of Worldcoin

Introduction

Dystopian storylines are loved by Sci-Fi filmmakers and audiences alike. The concept of having mankind create technology that threatens their own free existence gets people interested and wanting more. The tables turn when the “Fi” part is dropped and only Science remains. Getting your eyeballs scanned to confirm your human-ness would be downright insanity to someone born in the 1800s. However, there is a reasonable chance that this will be the reality of our coming generations.

The mission of Worldcoin

In this day and age where AI tools get better every day, it is very difficult to identify what is real and what is artificially generated. How do you make sure that the person availing a service is even a person? How do you know that they are not using multiple fake accounts to sabotage a service? How do you provide every human access to the global economy while making sure that AI isn’t exploiting it too? Worldcoin was started as an answer to all these questions. It is very interesting to note that the co-founder of Worldcoin is also the co-founder of OpenAI- Sam Altman.

The mission and vision of Worldcoin is to become the world’s largest digital identity and financial network, giving ownership to everyone. It has three main components: World ID, the WLD token, and the World App. An eyeball-like biometric imaging device called the Orb plays a huge role in proving a person’s personhood.

The Orb

The Orb is an imaging device that verifies you are a real and unique person who has not previously received a World ID. It has sensors that first scan your face and make sure that you are human. Then, it scans your iris and generates an iris code, which is a way to numerically represent the texture of an iris. It then sends the iris code to Worldcoin’s sign-up service to compare it with the codes that already exist. If the same / a very similar code is found, it considers it a duplicate and halts the enrollment process. If all conditions are met, the uniqueness service submits a request to include the user’s identity commitment in the list of verified commitments.

Getting your eyeballs scanned is not a necessity to get a World ID. You can download the World App and create an account there, which will automatically grant you access to World ID and Worldcoin’s crypto wallet. Both of these are separate and are never linked to each other. Your World ID will, however, remain unverified until you find an Orb and scan your eyeballs. The Orb doesn’t store your photo and deletes it promptly after generating the iris code.

The backbone of Worldcoin- ZKPs

Zero-Knowledge Proofs can be explained on a very high level as a situational inside joke that only you and your best friend know. When said situation happens, you glance towards them wondering if they are thinking the same thing and if they look back at you with a grin on their face, they actually are. In this case, neither said the joke out loud but it was understood by both. This is kind of how ZKPs work too.

Worldcoin uses ZKPs to make it mathematically impossible to link the usage of World ID across applications. Whenever a user makes use of their World ID, ZKPs are used to prove they are a unique human. This means that no third party will ever know a user’s World ID or wallet public key, and in particular, cannot track users across applications. It also guarantees that using World ID is not tied to any biometrical data or iris codes. When you want to prove you are a unique human, you should be able to do so without revealing any personal information about yourself.

All eyes on you?

They are making you download an app, create an account, and scan your eyeballs to prove that you are human; wouldn’t this allow anyone in the world to somehow track all your actions and link them right to you? Well, not quite. Protecting privacy is one of the two main challenges tackled by Worldcoin, with the other being proving personhood. Though you do have to make an account on the World App, you’re never asked to enter your personal information there and it is completely optional.

You can voluntarily share your data with Worldcoin when you are getting your eyeballs scanned by opting in to make your face’s image a part of their training dataset. This option exists because the algorithm that computes the iris code is still evolving to make sure it can support signing up everyone. If a user opts in to image custody, images are stored on an encrypted hard drive in the Orb before being uploaded. It’s all still in your hands though. You can just, not opt-in to this procedure if you’re uncomfortable with it.

An area of potential concern is that to prevent duplicate sign ups, the iris codes scanned by Worldcoin’s orbs are stored in a database containing those which have previously been seen. However, a user never shares their identity commitment when using World ID. ZKPs make sure it’s impossible to know the identity commitment or iris code of a specific person, even if this database was leaked by a hacker or made public. Your privacy remains preserved.

What’s in it for you?

Currently, there are barely any uses of the Worldcoin ecosystem for end users like you and me. It was built keeping the far-off future in mind and we are not there yet. At the time of writing this blog, the most practical use case of Worldcoin is to trade and profit off of their WLD token.

The recent launch of World ID 2.0 brings optimism to users, investors, and developers. Marketed as an “internet human passport,” it introduces a feature called Apps, offering a new method for creating and utilizing integrations to authenticate online accounts through World ID. To cater to varying security needs, the update includes three levels of verification for app integrations, recognizing that not every application requires the same level of security as Know Your Customer (KYC).

Here are the three levels:

1. World ID Device: Requires a device with the World app and a World ID but without Orb verification.
2. World ID Orb: Requires a verified World ID.
3. World ID Orb+: Requires a valid World ID along with face authentication to ensure the ID belongs to the user. This authentication process takes place locally on the user’s device.

They’ve also made some core upgrades to double down on their principles of privacy, one of which is that you can now reset your World ID right from the app. About time indeed.

Final Thoughts

This must have been a roller-coaster ride for you if you’re completely new to blockchains and Artificial Intelligence. All the scenarios from TV shows, movies, and conspiracy theories are materializing right in front of our very eyes. These scenarios have already given us enough warnings about what the world becomes when technology is allowed to run amok.

So, are we actually doing something? Yes, multiple regulations are being brought into the picture to allow controlled growth of AI while also making sure it doesn’t pose a threat to humanity’s well-being. There is no definite solution for this as AI in itself is not a single entity and it’s not all black and white. Moral dilemmas arise whenever the usage of AI is questioned. A singer looking for artwork may want to go to a good artist but be stopped by budget constraints. In this case, they would not bat an eyelid to pay a surprisingly low price for AI-generated art. But chances are, this same singer will not feel very nice when someone replaces their vocals with AI.

All things considered and examined, it seems like proof of personhood will become vital in the future, as dark as it sounds. See you in Black Mirror Season 7, shot on a spherical camera, here in real life.

Image Sources

Black Mirror wallpaper: Pxfuel

Worldcoin Orb: securities.io

All eyes on you: pinimg.com

Futuristic wallpaper: OpenArt