Tip Sheets
Meta's smart glasses spark privacy fears — but curbing them could run into the First Amendment.
August 24, 2026
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As use of Meta’s AI-powered smart glasses increases, so do privacy concerns, particularly as many women report being covertly recorded in public. But what legal protections exist, and where are their limits?
G.S. Hans, associate director of the First Amendment Clinic and professor at Cornell Law School, says creating laws that limit pervasive recording without inhibiting the ability to gather news and document assembly will be difficult.
Gautam Hans
Associate Clinical Professor of Law
“It’s generally understood that the First Amendment protects the right to record in public, with a few limitations for things like invasions of personal space. That protects journalists, photographers, and citizens who, for example, have recorded rallies, police misconduct, and the like.
“What’s difficult about the Meta glasses example (and all types of pervasive recording) is that the social norms surrounding these technologies are still in their infancy. We simply don’t have a robust understanding about when it’s OK to use such devices, whether notice is required, how long it’s permissible to record, and for what purposes — among many other questions. Creating laws that preserve the ability to gather news and document public assembly, while limiting undisclosed pervasive surveillance, seems extremely difficult to me. I suspect that the most sustainable solution will combine legal and policy interventions with a more dynamic set of social rules.”
