Is it time to ban Meta glasses at work?

With Meta reporting seven million pairs of their smart glasses sold to date, and researchers predicting as many as 100 million people will purchase a pair in the next few years, it's increasingly likely that you know someone who wears them.

Smart glasses are no longer a niche concern; businesses need to prepare for the potential risks they can present in the workplace. But should they be banned?

We are starting to see more calls from clients asking this question, but the answer isn’t as clear-cut as you may think. Let’s look at the risks.

Using smart glasses to film or monitor colleagues puts both the individual and the company at risk of harassment claims under the Equality Act 2010. If your employees think they are being filmed without their knowledge, that is a breeding ground for grievances. And from October this year, employers will be required to take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment, including from third parties, under the Employment Rights Act 2025.

That’s led businesses like Wetherspoons to ban customers from wearing Meta glasses on their premises altogether. UK courts and tribunals have also announced a ban on them due to the risk of covert filming.

If an employee records someone without their knowledge, then it can put their employer in breach of data protection laws, as photos and videos are considered personal data. This means the company could be held liable if someone is filmed or photographed in your workplace without their knowledge.

Most employers don’t realise that all it takes is one employee secretly recording sensitive conversations, intellectual property, or confidential documents to put your entire business at risk. Depending on the sensitivity of the information, this could lead to formal disciplinary action for the person recording.

Employers should consider why an employee may be recording images or videos in the workplace.

If a disabled employee, for example, someone with a visual impairment or neurodivergent condition, uses smart glasses as an aid, such as using AI for real-time text-to-speech or object recognition, then this could be considered as part of your legal duty to make reasonable adjustments. But it would still need to be balanced with data privacy safeguards.

An employee may also use smart glasses to document workplace harassment or misconduct. Although secret recording is not the right approach, if it aims to expose legal wrongdoing, it may qualify as a protected disclosure under whistleblowing laws. Wearable tech is evolving faster than workplace policy can keep up. This is a real problem for business owners with real-life legal implications.

As an employer, you do have broad authority to restrict or completely ban wearable recording tech on the premises, and employees who use it illegally or against policy face serious consequences, up to and including dismissal.

Review your existing privacy and recording policies to ensure they specifically include use of wearable tech, and ensure employees are aware of what is and isn’t permissible.

For most businesses, I don’t think a blanket ban on smart glasses is necessary, but every business should have a policy around their use. That could include requirements to disable photo and video recording capability, prevent them from connecting to company Wi-Fi and require them to be turned off during meetings or in sensitive areas, such as bathrooms and changing facilities.

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Rob McKellar is Legal Services Director and General Counsel at Peninsula.

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