Meta’s AI-powered smart glasses can translate conversations, send texts, take calls and record video. But as the technology becomes more common, concerns are growing about people being recorded without their knowledge.
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The glasses look like traditional eyewear but have built-in cameras that can take pictures and record video. An LED light is designed to indicate when recording is underway.
Some Georgia Tech students told Channel 2 Action News they are uncomfortable with how easily someone could record them without their knowledge.
“Obviously with your giant camera, I know I’m being recorded because there’s no light on it... but those (smart glasses) they could be off or on. And I don’t know,” Georgia Tech student Gia Pisicchio said.
Another student, Hufsa Qidwai, said unwanted recordings have become a concern on campus, including incidents involving sexual harassment.
Earlier this year, University of Georgia police investigated complaints from students who said people wearing smart glasses secretly filmed them on campus. One interaction involving a student’s appearance was later uploaded to social media.
Kade Crockford, director of the ACLU’s Technology and Justice Programs, said people still expect some level of privacy and anonymity in public spaces.
Under Georgia and federal law, recording people in public places is generally legal because there is no expectation of privacy. Recording in private spaces, including restrooms, locker rooms or private homes, can result in criminal or civil consequences.
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There have also been cases involving the misuse of the technology outside Georgia.
This summer in Boston, a registered sex offender was charged with using camera-equipped sunglasses to record children changing at a playground.
In June, Milton police arrested Christopher Hall on felony eavesdropping and surveillance charges. A mother found smart glasses on top of her car, pointed toward her 13-year-old daughter’s bedroom window.
Hall’s friend told Channel 2’s Michael Seiden that he believed there was an innocent explanation, saying Hall may have gotten drunk at a party and left the glasses behind.
Smart glasses and other personal electronic devices are also banned in Georgia schools under a law that took effect this year.
Georgia Schools Superintendent-elect Dr. Lydia Powell said the technology could create challenges for schools, including students potentially photographing tests or recording others in restrooms.
“If a student is taking a test, it would be so easy for them to capture a picture of it and put it on the internet,” Powell said.
Privacy advocates are also raising concerns about the possibility of facial recognition technology being added to the glasses.
The ACLU says the technology could allow wearers to covertly identify people around them and store that information. Meta acknowledges it is exploring the technology, but says no final decision has been made.
There are also questions about how images and other data collected by the glasses are being used.
According to Meta, the recording indicator light cannot be turned off or disabled. If the light is blocked, such as with tape, the camera will not work.
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