The Philippines has always wanted to be a hub for innovation, a place where technology, startups and global talent can thrive.
No less than President Marcos has said that he envisions the country as a hub for digital innovation and entrepreneurship.
However, when our rules keep changing, foreign investors become wary and hesitant to invest their money here.
The National Privacy Commission (NPC) has recently issued a cease and desist order against US company Tools for Humanity (TFH), the developer of the World App and proprietor of a custom, state-of-the-art hardware device called the Orb, for alleged violations of the Data Privacy Act of 2012. The agency even went as far as ordering the company to remove the app globally.
TFH was founded in 2019 by Alex Blania as CEO and Sam Altman as chairman. Yes, the same Sam Altman who co-founded OpenAI.
NPC claims, among other things, that the collection of biometric data, specifically iris scans, is excessive and disproportionate for the stated purpose of proving humanity or mere authentication, and that such collection exposes Filipino data subjects to possible identity fraud, theft, and damage to their reputation. It added that offering monetary incentives in exchange for submitting to the Orb verification process constitutes undue influence, rendering the consent obtained from data subjects not freely given and therefore invalid.
But one’s biometric data is not collected and stored, contrary to what the NPC insists, according to the World.
One can visit the World App to secure their World ID and gain access to a variety of applications, including related apps like World Coin.
Since World launched in the Philippines in February, millions of Filipinos have already secured their anonymous, proof-of-human verifications or World IDs. These individuals can now combat online crime and deepfake-related fraud, which increased by 4,500 percent in the country between 2022 and 2023.
As explained by the company, ‘the World ID is a digital proof that one is human, but not a specific human. The World ID does not know your name, address, age, height, weight, or eye color. In other words, a digital identity is about who you are, whereas World ID is about what you are – a unique human.’
World ID verification occurs at an Orb, a device that verifies a person’s unique identity. After verifying with an Orb, your proof of human or World ID is stored on your phone in the World App, where you can use it to sign into online apps and services. Around 17 million individuals have already secured their World ID.
It added that World ID does not track people’s identities. After visiting the Orb, participants can verify their World ID, allowing them to anonymously and fully participate in the network. It said that the World does not know and is not designed to know the identities of its participants. ‘The purpose of World ID is only to prove that you are human and unique. Therefore, Orb operators do not ask for any personal details, and the Orb camera does not store the photos,’ TFH emphasized.
It likewise stressed that World does not store biometric data. ‘The Orb takes photographs of your eyes and face. These photos are sent to your smartphone, which is the only place where they live and not on any company’s servers. The network uses cryptography to analyze the images to prove you’re a unique human and that you haven’t previously signed up for the network,’ it explained.
TFH also pointed out that hackers and other individuals cannot trace data back to users if the network does not store that data in the first place. ‘After a person visits an Orb, their photo is deleted from the Orb and those images are not stored on any database. All that remains is a cryptographic poof that they are unique. It’s completely anonymized,’ it said.
Interestingly, NPC’s action came after the company had already undergone a full year of compliance, joined the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT)’s sandbox program, registered with the NPC, and consulted with government agencies to ensure it followed all the rules.
The DICT Sandbox Program was established to assist companies with emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence, biometrics, or fintech, in operating safely under government supervision while regulations are still being developed. It enables regulators to observe new systems in a controlled environment, allowing innovation to continue without compromising public interest.
But now, after a change in leadership, the same regulators who approved the project are treating it as a violation.
This is exactly what investors fear about the Philippines. It’s not just the red tape or bureaucracy; it’s the lack of continuity. Policies and interpretations can change overnight depending on who is in charge. In other countries, rules outlast people. Here, people outlast rules.
When regulators change direction without a clear reason or due process, it doesn’t just hurt one company; it hurts the country’s reputation. Investors see it as a sign that decisions here can be arbitrary. And arbitrariness, in any form, is a close cousin of corruption, which is also about inconsistency, as when rules are applied differently depending on who’s enforcing them, or when a project’s fate depends on politics instead of policy. That kind of environment makes investors nervous, because it turns compliance into a gamble.
Beyond the legal debate, the decision sends a dangerous signal about how the Philippines treats innovation. Instead of being seen as a government confident enough to work with new technologies, it projects uncertainty and a tendency to overcorrect rather than collaborate. For many investors, that uncertainty is risk enough.
What’s ironic is that World’s technology was built to protect people from scams and impersonation, problems Filipinos face every day. Instead of being seen as an ally in online safety, it’s now being treated as a threat.
For global investors, this case shows that in the Philippines, the problem is not a lack of laws but a lack of predictability. If government approvals, sandbox programs, and registration processes can all be overturned by one new decision, then the message is: your investment here is only as safe as the next appointment.
This kind of regulatory uncertainty is what drives investors to Singapore, Vietnam, or Indonesia – countries that may be just as strict, but far more consistent. Businesses can adjust to difficult rules. What they cannot adjust to is unpredictability.
The NPC still has a chance to correct course. It can review its order, consider the due process it owes to a company that complied with the law, and show that Philippine institutions value fairness and stability.
At the end of the day, when rules change every time leadership does, confidence disappears. And once investors lose confidence, rebuilding it will take far more than a sandbox.