Meta's Ambitious Glasses Boast "No More Secret Filming"... Rendered Useless by a Mere $2 Sticker

Workaround Products to Block the LED Widely Available
Meta: "Strong Actions Such as Account Suspension Will Be Taken"

It has been pointed out that the privacy protection features of Meta's Artificial Intelligence (AI) glasses, which were introduced to prevent covert recording, can be rendered useless by a single sticker that costs only about one dollar each.

On July 31 (local time), IT-specialized media outlet Engadget attached a sticker purchased from TikTok Shop to the 2nd generation Ray-Ban Meta AI Glasses. As a result, although the LED indicating recording was barely visible from the outside, the camera continued to function normally. Such stickers are reportedly easy to obtain through platforms like Amazon and TikTok Shop.

The blocking stickers have a very tiny hole over the LED area. Because of this, the external light still reaches the device's sensor, allowing the camera to operate normally, but from the outside, the recording indicator light is completely hidden.

Engadget stated that it purchased 12 stickers and tweezers for application for $16.99 (approximately 25,000 won) for this experiment. The price per sticker is about $1.42 (approximately 2,000 won). Additionally, Engadget also tried a clip-on cover, sold for the Oakley Meta Vanguard, which is attached over the LED. When applied, the recording indicator was completely invisible.

With Meta AI Glasses, the front-facing LED turns on whenever a photo or video is taken. It blinks briefly during a photo, and flashes continuously during video recording, alerting people nearby that recording is in progress. Meta recently updated its software so that if the LED malfunctions or is entirely obscured, the camera will not operate to enhance privacy protection.

Ray-Ban Meta Artificial Intelligence (AI) Glasses

A single sticker has exposed a vulnerability in Meta's privacy protection policy. The privacy protection feature of the Meta AI Glasses only detects when the LED is fully blocked, making it difficult to identify cases where only the sensor is tricked as in this method.

In response, Meta stated, "Using products that bypass built-in security features is a clear violation of policy," and added, "We will strengthen our technology to detect unauthorized product usage and stop the camera." Meta also said, "We are immediately removing ads, posts, and sales listings that promote LED manipulation services," and warned, "If you invade others' privacy with modified glasses, your account will be suspended."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.