cross-posted from: https://piefed.social/c/technology/p/1812149/this-app-warns-you-if-someone-is-wearing-smart-glasses-nearby-404media
The creator of Nearby Glasses made the app after reading 404 Media’s coverage of how people are using Meta’s Ray-Bans smartglasses to film people without their knowledge or consent. “I consider it to be a tiny part of resistance against surveillance tech.”
more at: @[email protected]
There are also inexpensive ESP32-based
NestFlock camera detectors out there. They work by detecting their Bluetooth & Wi-Fi traffic, specifically by scanning for manufacturers’ OUIs on MAC addresses.Detecting Surveillance Cameras With The ESP32
The OUI scanning approach is correct but has a hard ceiling: it only works while the device is actively transmitting. Offline recording mode — which Meta Ray-Bans support — breaks detection entirely. Same limitation applies to the ESP32/FLOCK detector you linked: passive RF emission detection fails against any motivated actor who knows the countermeasure exists. Airplane mode, or a device with no wireless stack at all, makes both invisible. The app is useful for ambient deterrence — most casual wearers won’t bother — but it’s not adversarial detection. The threat model it actually solves is ‘oblivious person wearing Ray-Bans in a coffee shop,’ not ‘person deliberately surveilling you.’
That’s nice, but I wish there would be a way to somehow intercept traffic and send them some “warning” video in place of their recording…
Or something else that makes their recording useless or broken ^^