Norway seeks temporary ban on smart glasses amid privacy concerns
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Norway → seek → concerns
Norway's government is proposing parliament enact a temporary ban on AI glasses in some places
A trip to the park.
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parliament → propose → park
All in public spaces where smart glasses can snap photos, record conversations or stream video online — without people in the line of their lenses and microphones knowing about it.
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people → snap → it
Norway's government wants to get a handle on both the promise and peril of AI glasses and is proposing that parliament enact a temporary ban on them in some places.
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parliament → want → places
It's the latest sign of growing concern in many countries about new technologies that are fundamentally changing the way people live.
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people → grow → way
Some governments have banned the use of social media by children and young teens.
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governments → ban → children
Norway's government said the proposal for the temporary ban will be made to parliament, the Storting, "as soon as possible."
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proposal → say → parliament
Norwegian authorities say a ban on the use of smart glasses could apply to places where "privacy is particularly important," like health-care facilities, or fitness centres with changing rooms and showers.
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privacy → say → rooms
A major focus is spaces where children congregate, such as schools, kindergartens, playgrounds and youth clubs.
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children → congregate → schools
But it could extend to public concerts and sports events, plus parks, beaches, museums and shopping centers.
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it → extend → concerts
A temporary ban would give authorities time to decide what types of devices might be affected, and debate whether permanent regulation is needed.
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regulation → give → devices
The government was quick to note that it was not proposing a total ban and said such devices should still be allowed in some places and for private use.
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devices → note → use
The government also said it was considering exceptions to a ban for vulnerable groups, so that "socially beneficial uses" of smart glasses could be permitted in some circumstances.
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uses → say → circumstances
Should municipalities ban smart glasses in pools and change rooms?
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municipalities → ban → pools
New research argues it may be a public health concern
Privacy advocates hail Norway's move
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advocates → argue → move
Adam Smith, a technology advocacy officer at Britain-based Privacy International, said Norway's move was "a welcome protection against big tech's greedy attempts to extract ever more data, often in absence of any thought for the privacy or rights of others.
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move → base → others
"
"No reality exists in which people expect to be secretly surveilled going about their daily lives," he said.
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he → exist → lives
One effort to rein in the use of AI glasses has run aground — in the home of Silicon Valley.
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effort → rein → Valley
California's governor last week vetoed legislation that would have penalized the use of smart glasses to record people without their permission in places like changing rooms, doctor's offices and other spaces people generally consider private.
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people → veto → rooms
Despite Meta's assurances, some businesses clamp down
Meta, the company behind Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram that has rolled out AI glasses with eyewear vendor Ray-Ban, encourages respect for privacy and advises customers on how to use the glasses responsibly.
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that → clamp → glasses
Not everyone loves being photographed.
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everyone → love → ?
Stop recording if anyone expresses that they would rather you not," Meta wrote on its site.
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Meta → stop → site
The tech giant based in Menlo Park, Calif., says a light on the glasses indicates when recording in underway, and if the glasses detect that the light has been blocked or physically tampered with, the camera is automatically disabled.
Despite such advice and assurances, some privacy advocacy groups cite a growing backlash against AI glasses.
Hans Anders, a prominent eyewear retailer in the Netherlands, has suspended sales of the Ray-Ban Meta glasses.
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Anders → base → glasses
"This decision follows the ongoing public and political debate surrounding smart glasses and the questions being raised about the conditions under which this technology can be used," Hans Anders said in a statement, suggesting that it plans to await the outcome of the debate before making a final decision.
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it → follow → decision
In Britain, the UK Cinema Association said in August it was introducing policies to prohibit or restrict the wearing of camera-enabled smart glasses, citing concerns about privacy and film piracy through the use of such technology.
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it → say → technology
The Aporia
