HateAid has filed a criminal complaint in Frankfurt accusing Meta, EssilorLuxottica (Ray‑Ban) and several retailers of violating German privacy law with AI‑enabled Ray‑Ban smart glasses. The group says the devices can record people without their knowledge and cites a federal ban on devices designed for covert recording. Germany's regulator BNetzA is monitoring the market but is not conducting a formal probe, noting sales are allowed when recording functions are clearly visible. State authorities and broadcasters have also signalled legal scrutiny amid concerns about image‑based violence targeting women.
German NGO Files Criminal Complaint Over Ray‑Ban Meta AI Glasses, Citing Covert Filming Concerns
FILE PHOTO: The updated Meta smart glasses are seen during the Meta Connect event at the company's headquarters in Menlo Park, California, U.S., September 27, 2023. REUTERS/Carlos Barria/File Photo
FRANKFURT, Aug 12 — A German digital-rights organisation has filed a criminal complaint in Frankfurt accusing Meta and several companies that sell the technology group's AI-enabled Ray‑Ban smart glasses of breaching national privacy laws.
HateAid said in a statement that the launch of the Ray‑Ban Meta Wayfarer and similar devices contravenes German digital privacy rules in a country where the right to privacy is highly protected. The group lodged its complaint with the Frankfurt-based digital crime prosecution unit ZIT on Aug. 12.
"There's no place to escape from smart glasses. You have to expect at any moment to be filmed and then exposed on the internet," said HateAid managing director Josephine Ballon.
The complaint names Meta's management, units of eyewear manufacturer EssilorLuxottica (including the Ray‑Ban brand), and retailers Fielmann, Apollo‑Optik, Mister Spex and MediaMarkt. HateAid said it based the filing on a federal digital data-protection statute that bans the sale of communication devices designed to record people without their knowledge.
Mister Spex told Reuters it had not been officially notified of any complaint and emphasised that it takes protection of customer privacy very seriously. The other companies named and ZIT did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Regulatory Context
Germany's digital communications regulator, the Federal Network Agency (BNetzA), issued guidance in late 2023 saying connected devices intended for covert audio or video recording are prohibited. A BNetzA spokesperson told Reuters the agency is closely monitoring the smart-glasses market but is not currently conducting a formal investigation.
"The ownership, import or sale of smart glasses are not banned ... for as long as the recording function is clearly visible, for instance via an optical signal," the spokesperson said.
Broadcaster SWR reported in July that a Hamburg-based state privacy protection authority was also taking legal steps related to the use of smart glasses.
HateAid's Concerns
HateAid warned that smart glasses allow a discreet surveillance capability disguised as an everyday object and said it has seen growing incidents of image-based digital violence, disproportionately targeting women. The organisation is urging prosecutors and regulators to treat the devices as a potential vector for privacy violations and harassment.
Reporting credit: Reuters.
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