• by Tanya Gazdik , Yesterday

Meta is responding to the backlash over its Ray-Ban smart glasses by implementing platform moderation bans, updating hardware safeguards and trying to curb viral harassment trends.

“Some people fear heights. Others fear the dark. Some increasingly fear ending up in a stranger’s Instagram Reel, recorded without their knowledge by a pair of what the internet has taken to calling ‘pervert glasses,’” according to Fortune. 

An activist group, Everyone Hates Elon, has released several out-of-home advertisements. 

First, the group transformed a Meta AI glasses ad featuring Kylie Jenner “into a cleverly subversive statement,” according to Futurism.com. “Specifically, they seem to have added a lenticular overlay on top of a London bus stop ad that transforms her visage into a terrifying bug-eyed monster — but only when seen from a specific angle.”

The group has come up with its next stunt. A new ad shows late sex criminal Jeffrey Epstein wearing a pair of the specs while getting his picture taken for the New York sex offender registry. “Glasses for people who don’t do consent,” the caption reads.

The negativity is even causing the competition to rethink product plans. 

“Apple is likely to wait until 2027 to unveil its own take on smart glasses,” according to Mashable. “That's in part because of additional work on privacy features, and other product safeguards, at a time when Meta's smart glasses are coming under fire.”

Apple views privacy as its top priority, with engineers and marketers trying hard to distinguish the company's approach from Meta’s, according to Bloomberg. 

“Instagram is cracking down on videos shot on Meta glasses that feature harassment of strangers in public places, such as the obnoxious prank videos,” according to Business Insider. “In an Instagram story, Instagram head Adam Mosseri said that such video content would now be banned on the platform.”

The “Pervert Glasses” nickname could be an indication of a deeper problem.

“There’s a notable backlash against wearable tech again, a call against smart glasses and those wearing them,” according to CNET. “Meta’s seen two waves of public backlash against its wearable products, but to me, the smart glasses pushback shows something more concerning: Meta never learned its own lessons from VR. There are some things VR did very, very right that smart glasses are doing very, very wrong.”