Here's a Ray-Ban Meta glasses update everyone will approve of – no privacy light, no camera
And it can't come soon enough
by Britta O'Boyle · T3
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Quick Summary
Meta has announced an update for all Meta smart glasses that will see the camera disabled if the privacy light is tampered with.
The company detailed the update in a blog post, and explained it will be mandatory to all users.
Many would argue that Meta’s collaborations with Ray-Ban and Oakley were key to smart glasses being accepted as a mainstream fashion accessory. Being able to blend in like a traditional pair of Wayfarer sunglasses while offering the wearer the ability to do things like take photos, videos and listen to music was a game-changer.
But not everyone loves the idea of wearers being able to capture pictures and video.
Thankfully, the Meta smart glasses all feature a privacy light, and not just the Ray-Ban and Oakley models, but Meta’s new own-branded models too. And that light shows when the camera is actively recording or taking a photo, so it helps allay some fears.
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Unfortunately though, not everyone in the world is just using smart glasses to take pictures of their friends or pets. There have been reports recently suggesting people have instead been tampering with the light so it wouldn’t be seen by those nearby when the camera was active.
What will the new Meta smart glasses update include?
Meta is taking action though. It announced in a post, spotted by 9to5Google, that it will release an update that disables the cameras if the privacy light has been “physically tampered with or destroyed”.
The post said: “The camera is disabled when people try to do this. Beginning with our second generation of glasses, the camera is automatically disabled if we detect that the capture LED has been blocked.
“No photos or videos can be taken until we detect that the light is unblocked.”
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But, as some users have gone beyond sticking tape over the camera, Meta is now going one step further: “We are continuously improving our ability to detect tampering, and now we’re updating the glasses to disable the camera if they detect the LED was physically tampered with or destroyed.”
For services that offer to tamper with the LED, Meta also said it was working to “remove ads, posts, and Marketplace listings,” and mentioned legal action against individuals or businesses involved.
It also told 9to5Google that the update announced today is rolling out now and will be “mandatory”.
We must say, it comes as much better news than the announcement Meta made that the smart glasses Conversation Focus feature will be locked behind a paywall. Let’s hope this latest update acts as a warning to those who have been using smart glasses for the wrong reasons.