ACLU and 75 Organizations Sound Alarm on Meta’s Plan to Add Facial Recognition Technology to Ray-Ban and Oakley Eyeglasses Open letter signed by scores of nonprofits warns that the glasses pose an unacceptable threat to our right to privacy and must be cancelled Meta’s reported plan to equip its artificial intelligence (AI) eyeglasses with facial recognition technology poses an unacceptable threat to privacy and liberty and is “a red line society must not cross,” a broad coalition of organizations led by the American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Massachusetts, and the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) warned today in a letter to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg. The letter was signed by 75 local, state, and national organizations that advocate for domestic violence survivors, worker rights, bodily autonomy, consumer privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties. They called on Meta to immediately halt and publicly disavow plans to equip its Ray-Ban and Oakley glasses with facial recognition. Glasses equipped with facial recognition technology would allow anyone wearing them to identify by name any strangers in their vicinity — including at protests, medical clinics, and businesses. They could then link that name to digital databases containing a wealth of sensitive information on the target’s job, habits, health, and relationships. “The American people have not consented to this massive invasion of privacy,” said Kade Crockford, director of technology and justice programs at the ACLU of Massachusetts. “Stalkers and scammers would have a field day with this technology. Federal agents could use it to harass and intimidate their critics. It’s dangerous and dystopian, and Meta must disavow it.” The open letter raises serious concerns about the technology’s impact on vulnerable populations, including people of color, women, children, immigrants, religious minorities, and members of the LGBTQ+ community. Anti-industry activists could use Meta’s glasses to