How the Law Can (Partially) Catch Up with Privacy-Destroying Smartglasses

The mass emergence of smartglasses is sure to shrink what little privacy Americans have left. But there are steps legislators should consider:

• Debating ways to protect people by requiring smartglasses to prominently display a light when recording.

Meta already has this feature – a small, white LED light on the right-hand side of the glasses. If a Meta user should block the light with a finger, the glasses stop recording. (Unfortunately, the light – essentially a white dot – may be hard to see, especially in a bright room or when people are in motion.)

At the very least, a clearly visible light-on when recording should be required by law for all brands of smartglasses.
 

• Protecting children and minors by forbidding strangers from taking their images and posting them online (unless it is in the service of a First Amendment activity like newsgathering).

 

• Clarifying the rights of individuals regarding reasonable expectations of privacy, including protections against the commercial use of their name, image, and likeness (NIL). Much will need to be sorted out to balance the First Amendment against consumers’ NIL rights, but this debate is inevitable.

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These will not be easy laws to craft. The Fourth Amendment will require painful tradeoffs. It is best to begin what promises to be a difficult process now, before smartglasses become a pervasive feature in American life.

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