Could Meta Ray-Bans be banned in Europe? EU regulators dial up the pressure
on smart glasses and the rest of the world is watching

Date:
Thu, 06 Aug 2026 02:00:00 +0000

Description:
As EU regulators consider smart glasses restrictions, here are the countries with intelligent eyewear bans.

FULL STORY ======================================================================Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Subscribe to our newsletter Smart glasses bans are being introduced and considered There are growing concerns over smart glasses privacy Could hardware changes solve people's concerns? Ive written a lot about the high likelihood of major smart glasses regulation being introduced in various regions as the technology garners more and more bad press, and as expected, were starting to see bans and other restrictions take shape.

No nation has yet to all-out ban smart glasses, but a few have outlawed their use in certain scenarios while others are investigating harsher measures.
Some private companies, such as event organizers, have also banned smart glasses on their premises and at their conferences. Of course, this is bad news for smart specs owners who now could be facing restrictions on where
they can/cant wear their intelligent eyewear. For anyone considering adding smart glasses to their technology arsenal, these possible restrictions should be taken into account when making your final purchase decision. Latest Videos From TechRadar Watch full video here:

So where are we starting to see smart glasses bans? Heres a selection of the countries investigating and introducing anti-intelligent eyewear rules.
(Image credit: Magic Leap) United States Generally, smart glasses can be worn freely in the US; however, New York State has banned them from being used in any of its courts . Smart glasses with recording capabilities could be seen
as an attempt to intimidate those involved in the case, and some cases
contain sensitive private information where unauthorized recordings could impose serious risks. You may like Meta just fixed a big privacy
vulnerability with its Ray-Ban smart glasses The smart glasses backlash hits new heights as celebs and activists unite Modders are disabling the Meta Ray-Bans most important safety feature

Other states have introduced less widespread bans in courts including Philadelphia, Hawaii, and North Carolina.

Meanwhile, the US Air Force includes in its rules for service members that they are Unauthorized to wear mirrored lenses or smart glasses with photo, video or artificial intelligence capabilities while in uniform. This seems like more of a presentation thing than an anti-smart specs rule (especially given the inclusion of mirrored specs), but it does mean you cant wear intelligent eyewear in uniform regardless. Get daily insight, inspiration and deals in your inbox Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

Further, attendees of conventions such as major hacker conference DEF CON 34 have been barred from wearing Meta glasses or similar. These bans focus on
the possibility of glasses recording folks without their knowledge with organizers arguing the recording light some glasses offer isnt the most obvious. UK (Image credit: Future / Hamish Hector) In the UK, things are much the same. Courts dont ban their use, though after one person was being
coached by their glasses AI mid-trial, their usage is generally advised against. There are also recording restrictions in UK courts, so while glasses arent explicitly banned, using them to snap photos or videos would be against the rules the same as it would be for using your phone or a regular camera.

We have seen companies like Monopoly Events ban camera glasses from its Comic-Cons after secret filming complaints, and theres a petition to the Government to ban the sale and promotion of smart specs in the country. These petitions dont always go anywhere, but it shows theres at least some public unrest over smart specs, and that could lead to rule changes. What to read next Pennsylvanian lawmakers want new smart glasses safety rules Meta Ray-Ban Scriber Optics hands-on: superb 2026 smart glasses I want to just love my
Meta AI glasses, but I cant get over privacy fears EU The European Data Protection Board is currently drafting a report on smart glasses, with it expected to land sometime in the next few months. However, while more general EU rules are being discussed, some individual members are making their own individual decisions on the tech.

Germanys data protection authority commissioner has warned camera glasses could be banned under existing laws prohibiting recording devices hidden in everyday objects.

Netherlands digital rights activists have expressed frustration at smart glasses' ability to record people without their knowledge, while Frances privacy regulator, the National Commission on Informatics and Liberty, has highlighted the privacy risks camera glasses pose. (Image credit: Meta) South Korea Rounding things off, we have a different kind of ban in South Korea, with the country specifically restricting smart glasses access in exam halls after cases of students being caught trying to cheat using intelligent eyewear.

Smart devices are generally banned from exam rooms in most schools across the globe to prevent cheating, though given the importance of South Koreas
College Scholastic Ability Test, their very explicit ban makes sense so as to remove any possible confusion over whether students can even bring smart
specs into the room with them. Could things change? (Image credit: Meta) Of course, very few bans have been brought in yet, but they could be unless things change on the hardware side.

A big concern is over privacy for non-glasses wearers caught in the gaze of someone's camera especially if they don't know theyre being recorded. An obvious fix here would be to make smart glasses much more obvious when
they're recording perhaps brighter camera lights, a loud audible camera
sound when snapping a photo, some kind of audio indicator when video is being recorded.

For users, theyll want better control over what is and isnt accessed by smart glasses makers when using their tech, and more certainty about which images are and arent shared, or which videos can or cant be seen by contractors.

Well have to wait and see how the situation develops, though Im not sure how much longer smart specs can go before we see serious regulations. Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds.



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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/computing/virtual-reality-augmented-reality/a-smart- glasses-ban-could-be-on-the-menu-in-the-eu-and-there-are-growing-restrictions- on-tech-all-over-the-world


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