Ray-Ban Meta Glasses Lawsuit: Were Users' Private Moments Exposed?

Meta is facing a class action lawsuit over its Ray-Ban AI smart glasses, and the allegations are wild.

The lawsuit, filed March 5 by Clarkson Law Firm in federal court in San Francisco, claims Meta marketed its glasses with phrases like "designed for privacy, controlled by you" and "built for your privacy" — while allegedly routing footage from those glasses to offshore contractors who reviewed intimate moments from users' homes without their knowledge.

The backlash started after an investigation by Swedish newspapers Svenska Dagbladet and Göteborgs-Posten revealed that data annotators employed by a Kenya-based subcontractor hired by Meta had reportedly encountered deeply private footage — including bathroom visits, sexual activity, and personal financial information — while labeling video content to train Meta's AI.

The lawsuit was filed on behalf of two plaintiffs, Gina Bartone of New Jersey and Mateo Canu of California, who both say they relied on Meta's privacy promises when buying the glasses, and wouldn't have purchased them if they'd known the truth. Both Meta and Ray-Ban manufacturer Luxottica of America are named as defendants.

The complaint also argues that using the glasses' AI features — like Live AI — requires sending footage to Meta's servers for processing, meaning users can't actually opt out once they activate those features.

Over 7 million pairs of Meta's Ray-Ban smart glasses were sold in 2025 alone, which means the class of potentially affected buyers is massive.

Meta maintains that footage stays on users' devices unless they choose to share it with Meta AI, and that contractors only review content shared by users to improve the experience — a practice the company says is common across the tech industry. Meta has not commented directly on the lawsuit.

The UK's data watchdog, the Information Commissioner's Office, has also opened a formal inquiry into Meta's data handling practices for the glasses.

No settlement has been reached yet. If you own a pair of Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, this case could affect you.

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