Meta hit with a class action lawsuit over smart glasses' privacy claims

"This nationwide class action seeks to hold Meta responsible for its affirmatively false advertising and failure to disclose the true nature of surveillance and its connection to the company's AI data collection pipeline. The filing names two individuals who live in California and New Jersey who purchased Meta's smart glasses and relied on Meta's marketing claims about the glasses' privacy protecting features."

"According to Svenska Dagbladet, workers have reported witnessing intimate material, including bathroom visits, sexual encounters and other private details as part of their job labeling objects in videos captured on users' smart glasses. Subcontractors in Kenya have raised concerns about viewing footage recorded via Ray-Ban Meta glasses."

"A spokesperson for Meta confirmed to Engadget that data from its smart glasses can be shared with human contractors in some cases. The company declined to comment on the claims in the lawsuit but stated that unless users choose to share media they've captured with Meta or others, that media stays on the user's device."

Meta is being sued in federal court for false advertising related to its AI-enabled Ray-Ban Meta glasses. The lawsuit was triggered by reports that subcontractors in Kenya have been reviewing footage captured by the glasses, including intimate content such as bathroom visits and sexual encounters. The contractors were tasked with labeling objects in videos as part of Meta's AI data collection process. The class action alleges that Meta's marketing claims about privacy protection misled consumers who purchased the glasses. The lawsuit seeks monetary damages and injunctive relief, claiming users would not have purchased the devices had they known about the contractor review process. Meta confirmed that data from smart glasses can be shared with human contractors in some cases but declined to comment further on the lawsuit.

Read at Engadget