The UK’s data watchdog has written to Meta over “concerning” reports private and intimate footage filmed on its AI smart glasses can be viewed by outsourced workers.
Footage of people having sex, on the toilet, and undressing is among that recorded using Meta glasses and then viewed by subcontractors in Kenya working to train the product’s AI functions, according to reporting from Swedish newspapers Svenska Dagbladet (SvD) and Goteborgs-Posten (GP).
Speaking anonymously to the outlets, the subcontractors said they did not believe people knew the glasses were recording when such footage was filmed. In its UK AI terms, Meta said: “In some cases, Meta will review your interactions with AIs, including the content of your conversations with or messages to AIs, and this review may be automated or manual (human)”. The company did not respond to a request for comment.
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), which works to uphold data and privacy protections in the UK, said it has written to Meta to request clarity on how the company is meeting data protection obligations.
One worker who spoke to SvD and GP reportedly said: “We see everything – from living rooms to naked bodies.”
Another reportedly said: “There are also sex scenes filmed with the smart glasses – someone is wearing them having sex. That is why this is so extremely sensitive.”
In a statement, a spokesperson for the ICO said the claims are “concerning” and that service providers are expected to “clearly explain what data is collected and how it is used”.
A spokesperson for the ICO said: “Devices processing personal data, including smart glasses, should put users in control and provide appropriate transparency. This includes where user data is used to train or develop AI systems.
"Service providers must clearly explain what data is collected and how it is used. Our guidance for smart technology and Internet of Things (IoT) manufacturers sets out these requirements and our expectations clearly.
"The claims in this article are concerning. We have now written to Meta to request information on how it is meeting its obligations under UK data protection law, and we will consider its response.”
The Independent previously reported on how Meta’s plans to add AI facial recognition features to its smart glasses could put women and girls in danger, according to leading charities.
Experts said the technology, which would allow wearers to identify people and find out information about them using the platform’s AI tool, could pose a “direct and serious” risk to survivors by placing them “in harm's way” and enabling abusers to locate and track them.
It comes after women told The Independent they believe predators are using the covert nature of the glasses to violate women’s privacy after they were filmed without their knowledge.
Meta has been contacted for comment.
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