Bug made some Ray-Ban Meta glasses record conversations without activation

Some Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses recorded conversations without users intentionally activating the voice assistant. Users reported the behavior online this week.

The recordings and text transcripts were stored in the conversation history of the Meta AI app. One Reddit user said the problem occurred across three pairs of glasses even though “Respond without Hey Meta” was turned off.

Meta says the bug was fixed

Android Authority reported the online discussion on Tuesday. Later that day, Meta said the issue had been resolved and that users could review and delete voice logs of Meta AI interactions in the settings.

The company did not explain what caused the unauthorized recordings. The Reddit user linked the behavior to a recent firmware update, but Meta has not confirmed that explanation.

Number of affected devices unknown

The number of affected devices remains unknown. Several reports appeared online, but Android Authority said it could not reproduce the problem before Meta announced the fix.

Ars Technica asked Meta how it would prevent similar bugs and how many devices were affected. No response had been reported at publication time.

Privacy advocates had already raised concerns about Meta’s glasses and similar products from other vendors. Their less conspicuous cameras and microphones have prompted fears that the devices could make it easier to record people secretly.