Meta’s AI-powered smart glasses are facing new privacy concerns after an investigation claimed that sensitive footage captured by the devices was reviewed by human contractors in Kenya.
According to a report by Swedish outlets Svenska Dagbladet and Göteborgs-Posten, contractors working in Nairobi as AI annotators reportedly reviewed videos recorded using Meta’s smart glasses that included highly private moments. The investigation alleges that the footage sometimes contained scenes such as bathroom visits, sexual activity, and other intimate situations.
AI annotators are typically responsible for labeling images, audio, or text to help train artificial intelligence systems. Workers interviewed in the report said they review visual data to help Meta’s AI understand what users are seeing through the glasses’ cameras.
A former Meta employee told the Svenska Dagbladetthat the company blurs faces in the footage before it reaches human reviewers. However, contractors interviewed also claimed that the blurring does not always work properly, and that faces sometimes remain visible. Reviewers also said that other sensitive information, including bank cards, occasionally appears in the videos they review.
The report has already triggered legal action in the United States. At least one proposed class action lawsuit accuses Meta of violating privacy and false advertising laws. The lawsuit argues that Meta promoted its smart glasses as devices designed with privacy protections, while allegedly failing to disclose that footage could be reviewed by human contractors.
Meta’s smart glasses, developed in partnership with eyewear giant EssilorLuxottica, include models under the Ray-Ban and Oakley brands. The devices feature built-in cameras and an AI assistant that can answer questions about what the wearer is seeing.
The category has grown quickly in recent years. EssilorLuxottica reportedly sold more than seven million pairs of Meta’s AI-powered glasses in 2025 alone, highlighting how rapidly the devices are entering mainstream use despite ongoing surveillance concerns.
Meta has previously updated its privacy policies around the glasses. Last year, the company enabled Meta AI with camera use by default unless users disable the “Hey Meta” feature. It also removed an option that previously allowed users to opt out of storing voice recordings in the cloud.
In a statement addressing the report, Meta spokesperson Tracy Clayton said that photos and videos captured by the glasses remain on the user’s device unless they are shared with others or with Meta’s AI services.
Privacy Concerns Grow as Smart Glasses Become Popular
Regulators have started taking notice of the claims. The UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office has reportedly asked Meta for more information following the investigation.
Privacy groups have also raised concerns about Meta’s longer-term ambitions for the technology. The Electronic Privacy Information Center has warned that integrating facial recognition capabilities into smart glasses could pose serious risks to privacy and civil liberties.
The growing presence of camera-equipped eyewear has also sparked countermeasures. Recently, an Android app called Nearby Glasses made headlines for offering a way to detect smart glasses worn by people nearby.
The app scans for Bluetooth signals emitted by wearable devices, including smart glasses made by Meta, Oakley, and Snap. If it detects a compatible signal, it sends an alert to the user warning that a device capable of recording video may be nearby.
New App Alerts Users About Nearby Smart Glasses
However, a developer has built a new Android app called Nearby Glasses to help address privacy concerns around smart glasses. The app scans for Bluetooth signals from nearby wearable devices and alerts users if it detects smart glasses made by companies like Meta or Snap.
One of the main concerns with camera-equipped smart glasses is that they often look almost identical to regular eyewear. This means people nearby may not realize they are being recorded.
Nearby Glasses attempts to solve that problem by constantly scanning for Bluetooth signals that include identifiers linked to specific device manufacturers. If the app detects signals associated with companies like Meta or Snap, it sends an alert to the user indicating that a device capable of recording video may be nearby.
The app was developed by Yves Jeanrenaud, who said he was partly motivated by growing reports about wearable surveillance devices and how they are being used in real-world situations. Jeanrenaud has described smart glasses as a technology that raises serious privacy concerns because they can capture footage of people who have not given consent.
