France probes misuse of smart glasses in sexual harassment cases
Prosecutors are examining whether covert street filming with AI glasses amounts to sexual harassment as complaints rise and regulators question whether indicator lights provide enough consent protection.
- The Paris prosecutor's office recently opened a criminal probe following sexual harassment complaints related to a social media trend of using smart glasses to film women on the street without consent.
- Meta's AI-enabled glasses, produced with Franco-Italian group EssilorLuxottica, sold 7 million units last year, enabling discreet recording through embedded cameras that facilitate non-consensual filming.
- While devices include a small light indicating filming, rights groups argue this shifts the burden onto individuals. "Seeing a light come on doesn't mean that you consent," said Ines Legendre, legal expert at e-Enfance.
- Australia is considering workplace bans for camera-equipped smart glasses due to privacy concerns, while a German consumer rights group filed a criminal complaint against Meta citing data protection laws.
- A Meta spokesperson claimed the company "built privacy into our AI glasses from the ground up," yet Ines Girard of Hubertine Auclert argues the industry must do more to prevent abuse rather than burden surveilled individuals.
111 Articles
111 Articles
Women are being secretly filmed with “smart glasses” – and the clips are being spread on social media. Now the technology is causing concern around the world. – It is important that we as a society discuss these issues, says Sebastian Caicedo Gordh at the Swedish Privacy Authority.
In France, there are those who use the new smart glasses with cameras to film women on the street. There is also a teacher who has published 200 studies with AI and accuses colleagues of envy.
Meta Glasses Named in Seoul and Barcelona Filming Cases as French Prosecutors Investigate Women's Complaints
Authorities in Paris, Seoul and Barcelona are investigating allegations that women were filmed without consent using Meta smart glasses and that some footage was shared or monetised online.
The Paris Public Prosecutor's Office has opened several investigations into the misuse of connected glasses, after receiving complaints from women filmed without their consent. In France, the use of these intelligent frames is not prohibited in itself. But filming or photographing people without their knowledge is strictly regulated by the Criminal Code and the GDPR. - Filming in the street with connected glasses: what does the law say? (Social …
The Paris Public Prosecutor's Office is investigating Smart Glasses: Young French women are secretly filmed with high-tech goggles, and the recordings end up on social networks.
The Paris Public Prosecutor's Office has opened several investigations into the misuse of connected glasses. These devices, often used to broadcast humiliating videos on TikTok, can lead up to two years...
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