Norway to regulate the use of smart glasses

Norwegian officials have announced plans to regulate the use of smart glasses and similar devices, while also contemplating a ban on features that facilitate facial recognition in public areas.

Norway has [1] announced plans to regulate the use of smart glasses and similar devices, with a potential ban on features that facilitate facial recognition in public spaces. Smart glasses enable users to capture photos and videos, listen to music, make phone calls, translate foreign signs, project text or maps into their line of sight, and engage with an integrated AI assistant. Smart glasses enable users to capture photos and videos, listen to music, conduct phone calls, translate foreign language signs, project text or maps into their field of vision, and engage with an integrated AI assistant.

Karianne Tung [2] who is the Digitalisation Minister, announced plans to establish an expert group to provide guidance to the government on enhancing consumer protection in relation to new technologies. Additionally, she encouraged both the public and private sectors to develop their own guidelines. “We can see that people's private lives and privacy are coming under pressure from new technology, and I therefore want to regulate smart glasses and similar devices more strictly than today. This could, for example, mean banning features such as facial recognition of other people in public spaces,” said Tung. “There is a clear trend that artificial intelligence is being combined with cameras and microphones that are built into things like glasses, earbuds, caps, and other items we use in everyday life. We must avoid this equipment being used to monitor other people in public spaces.”

Finn Lützow-Holm Myrstad, who [3] is the director of digital policy at the Norwegian Consumer Council, expressed support for [4] a potential ban on facial recognition in public spaces. However, he highlighted that this issue is not the sole concern associated with the glasses. Norway’s proposal signals a significant change in the adoption of smart glasses, which are transitioning from experimental technology to widespread consumer products. This development brings forth important considerations regarding biometric surveillance, workplace privacy, and the adequacy of current laws to manage continuously operating AI cameras.

Norway's proposed restrictions highlight the shifting discussion regarding surveillance from the accuracy of facial recognition technology to the structure of routine monitoring. Smart glasses exemplify a larger trend where cameras, artificial intelligence, and biometric identification are transitioning from regulated settings to everyday consumer products. As wearable AI technology grows more prevalent, governments and employers will confront the challenge of whether current privacy legislation is adequate in a landscape where individuals can effectively carry an ambient biometric sensor on their person.

In July 2026, the New York State Office of Court Administration implemented a prohibition on the use of smart glasses equipped with a camera, microphone, or computer in state, county, town, and village courts. New York is the first state to enact this ban. In a memorandum dated July 1, [5] the court administration stated that the ban prohibits surreptitious recording, aligning with the New York State Civil Rights Law.

This policy applies to everyone entering a courtroom in New York State, including attorneys, litigants, witnesses, family members, court employees, and members of the public. Individuals bringing smart glasses to a court facility are required to surrender them to uniformed court officers for safekeeping. Those with prescription lenses are advised to bring a standard pair of glasses for use within the court building. The California Senate is reviewing [6] a proposed bill that would create criminal penalties for the use of smart glasses to record in areas of a business where individuals have a reasonable expectation of privacy, unless explicit consent is obtained.

The Bill [7] is introduced by Senator Eloise Reyes, “This bill would additionally prohibit a person from operating a wearable recording device, as defined, to capture sound or video of any other person in any area within a place of business, as defined, where the person has a reasonable expectation of privacy unless the person operating the device has the explicit consent of that person to capture sound or video of that person. The bill would prohibit a person from disabling any light, sound, or other indicator on a wearable recording device that indicates that the device is capturing sound or video. The bill would exempt from these provisions the use of hearing aids, augmentative and alternative communication devices, and similar devices by persons with impaired hearing or communication disorders when used for the purpose of overcoming the impairment or disorder to permit the hearing of sounds ordinarily audible to the human ear or to support communication with the person or by persons with a disability if the device or technology is used for the purpose of enabling a person’s access to, or participation in, activities of daily living or to support a person’s functional needs related to the disability or condition,” said Reyes.

On August 11, 2026 it was reported [8] that Courts in England and Wales have implemented a ban on Meta glasses, aligning with similar prohibitions from various restaurants, theatres, and pubs. His Majesty’s Courts & Tribunals Service or HMCTS, overseeing all criminal, civil, and family courts in the regions, has stated that Meta glasses will be confiscated from individuals entering its facilities. In the UK, capturing images or videos within court buildings is prohibited without official permission and may result in contempt of court charges. Although lawyers and the public can enter courts with smartphones capable of recording audio and video, HMCTS clarified that this exception does not extend to smart glasses.

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