THERE are six pubs in Worcestershire where Meta glasses have been banned.
The glasses, which can record video footage, have been banned at more than 800 pubs across the UK over concerns about privacy.
Having increased in popularity, Meta Glasses have sparked fears about people being recorded without their knowledge and the footage being posted online.
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Meta, the American company behind Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, has insisted that a light on the glasses will alert people when they are being filmed.
“People use our glasses because they’re helpful and help them stay in the moment, from listening to music to live translation or hands-free calls,” a spokesperson for Meta said.
“They also provide critical new technology for people who are low-sighted or hard of hearing and limiting how people can use this technology would be a major step backwards.
“Naturally some places shouldn’t be filmed at all and that’s reasonable but rules should be applied consistently.”
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Pub company not convinced
Unconvinced, pub company JD Wetherspoon has said that the glasses appear to breach a rule in its pubs against filming people without permission.
The glasses are therefore banned at hundreds of venues, including these Worcestershire pubs:
A spokesperson for JD Wetherspoon said: “Like many hospitality companies, Wetherspoon has CCTV cameras for security reasons, but their use is strictly controlled by data legislation.
“Apart from that, the general code that applies in our pubs, and most pubs, is that you can’t film customers or employees without their permission.
“Meta glasses seem to breach this code, and common sense, by enabling surreptitious surveillance, so our instinct is to say turn off the cameras.
“This is akin to our efforts to stop audible playing of videos in our pubs, which also invades people’s space.”
