Facebook’s Ray-Ban Stories smartglasses, which can record photos and video with a voice command, are facing criticism for potential privacy violations.

Users can upload recorded content from the smartglasses to social media via their phones. But with only a small white light on the frames to alert those being recorded, government regulators in Italy and Ireland have raised concerns. “While it is accepted that many devices including smartphones can record third-party individuals, it is generally the case that the camera or the phone is visible as the device by which recording is happening, thereby putting those captured in the recordings on notice,” said an Irish Data Protection Commission statement.

Ray-Ban Stories have launched in Ireland, Italy, the UK, Canada, Australia and the US. In 2013 Google Glass sparked a similar backlash over built-in cameras, prompting the company to divert its marketing away from the general public. While, after writing off US$40 million for its first smart video spectacles launched in 2016, Snapchat unveiled its third iteration in 2019, offering 3D image capture and viewing, but so far these have failed to appeal, selling below expectations.