Newest “Smart” Glasses Put Individuals' Privacy in Jeopardy

Smart glasses may appear to be the coolest gadget in consumer tech, but are they infringing on and possibly abusing individuals’ privacy? Spy glasses are cool for spy movies, something James Bond or Inspector Gadget may wear. However, many critics and industry experts warn that these glasses expose consumers’ privacy and personal data.

In early September, Facebook launched Ray-Ban Stories, presenting these glasses as “a new way to capture photos and video, share your adventures and listen to music or take phone calls — so you can stay present with friends, family and the world around you.” The sunglasses have built-in cameras to “let you capture life’s moments as they happen from a unique first-person perspective” and “record the world as you see it, taking photos and up to 30-second videos.”

With built-in speakers and microphones for calls and videos, they can also capture someone else’s private conversation or a stranger’s goings-on. While there is an LED light to show people you’re taking a photo or video, many critics, including Ireland’s Data Privacy Commissioner (DPC), are questioning if this light is bright enough or big enough to warn others that are being recorded.

It boils down to two privacy issues at stake:

1. Your privacy. Facebook can track your personal data, your activity, your geo location information, and more. Your personal data is stored and used — and controlled by Facebook — not you. Did you know that Facebook even stores the transcripts of your voice commands? Facebook stores transcripts of users’ voice commands, accessible by “trained reviewers.”
2. Others’ privacy. You can walk down the street and record or photograph anything or anyone you see and post on Facebook or Instagram without people knowing that you are recording or taking pictures

Consumers Beware: Camouflaged Spying

Someone is watching you, and it’s not just the person wearing these new Ray-Ban sunglasses — it’s the tech giants, according to Tom Kelly, IDX’s president and CEO. In a recent KFBK radio interview, Kelly warns consumers that their privacy and data are in danger. “These tech companies are injuring a whole generation.” He contends that these companies have no concern for individuals or no level of accountability. He believes the tech giants have an ethical obligation to better protect consumers and their privacy. He describes Ray-Ban as an “iconic brand [that] is an instrument of privacy invasion.”

Kelly likens what’s going on today to George Orwell’s book, 1984, “The big eye is not government, it’s these social platforms that are making incredible amounts of money mining and harvesting and utilizing and abusing personal information of individuals.”

All of this activity is fueling an industry valued at $227 billion per year. Read more in Somebody’s Watching Me: How Our Online Behavior is Being Tracked.

What can consumers do to take charge of their digital privacy? IDX Privacy can help with privacy protection. If your information becomes available to thieves, the IDX Privacy Platform will send you alerts so that you can take action and head off trouble by changing passwords, set up multi-factor authentication, and pay special attention to the accounts most at risk.

Media Highlights Privacy Concerns

A flood of journalists took a first look at these glasses and have voiced their privacy concerns. K. Bell with Engadget writes, “There are many valid reasons why you’d want to avoid ceding yet another surface of your life — much less your face — to Facebook… We all know the company has a pretty dismal track record when it comes to privacy.” Joanna Stern with The Wall Street Journal states “Ray-Ban Stories raise about a million concerns about the future of wearable technology” and “These Ray-Bans just look normal. That’s what makes them so cool, but also makes them, well, spy glasses...And they’re powered by technology from Facebook, which has a long history of privacy issues.” Daniel Leufer with AccessNow contends that these glasses “threaten our rights because they turn humans into surveillance cameras and put bystanders at risk.”

What You Can Do to Take the Scary Out of Social Media

Facebook has many ways to gather data on you. In addition to the information you share on your page, Facebook tracks the things you Like and Share, the Facebook groups you belong to, events you attend, and location information from photos you and others post. Since Facebook owns Instagram and WhatsApp, there are more apps that track your every move. Read Another Day, Another Facebook Privacy Issue, for steps you can take to better protect your personal privacy and avoid being part of online tracking and profiling. For continuous monitoring and protection of your sensitive information on sites and apps that you visit, IDX Privacy can help. the removal of your sensitive information. Protecting consumer privacy is critical. Let’s reserve the spy glasses — along with fake passports, surveillance equipment, and secret passages — for 007.