Senators investigate the risks of Meta smart glasses

U.S. senators are demanding that Meta explain how its glasses protect privacy and what data they use to train AI. The devices are under scrutiny in Europe, and users have filed a lawsuit over employees’ access to intimate recordings.

Two U.S. senators investigate Meta over risks linked to smart glasses

Democratic senators Ron Wyden of Oregon and Edward Markey of Massachusetts have launched an investigation into Meta’s smart glasses. They are concerned about privacy and safety risks, including secretly filming people without their consent and collecting data that may be used to train artificial intelligence systems. In public discussion, the devices have been nicknamed “pervert glasses.”

According to Gizmodo, the senators have asked Meta to provide information by Thanksgiving about safety reviews and human rights impact assessments conducted before the product’s release. They also want to know how the company analyzed privacy threats and what safeguards are currently in place.

In a letter to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg sent on Thursday, Wyden and Markey said the company’s glasses are increasingly associated with serious privacy violations affecting users and the people around them. According to the senators, Meta identified privacy threats to bystanders and vulnerable groups before the glasses were released in 2021, but went ahead and launched a product that, they believe, is specifically suited to invading the privacy of both users and those around them.

The letter’s authors are demanding that Meta explain how it prevents the unauthorized recording, disclosure, or processing of sensitive and intimate images. They also ask whether the company assessed the risk of the glasses being used for voyeurism, the illegal recording of intimate images, and other similar privacy violations. In addition, the senators have requested information about which images are used to train Meta’s AI and whether users can request the deletion of biometric and other data collected by the glasses.

The image accompanying the publication shows Meta Starfire smart glasses, designed by Kylie Jenner. However, lawmakers, regulators, and privacy advocates are concerned about the company’s camera-equipped models in general.

Several European countries, including France, Germany, and the Netherlands, are discussing a possible ban on these devices. Regulators are checking whether the glasses comply with privacy laws. In particular, authorities are considering whether they meet EU rules and whether people captured on camera have an effective way to object to the collection and use of their personal data.

More than 70 people who bought or used the smart glasses, or appeared in recordings made with them, have also raised complaints against Meta. They have filed a lawsuit against the company, claiming that their sensitive and intimate images were accessible to employees abroad. These workers are paid to review and label photos and videos so that Meta’s artificial intelligence systems can better recognize visual information.

Amid growing scrutiny of Meta’s camera-equipped models, the company is reportedly preparing a new version of its smart glasses without a camera.