Workers report watching Ray-Ban Meta-shot footage of people using the bathroom

Meta's commitment to user privacy is facing intense criticism after a recent report revealed that employees at a subcontractor have been viewing sensitive footage captured by Ray-Ban smart glasses. This unsettling information comes from a collaborative investigation by Swedish media outlets Svenska Dagbladet and Göteborgs-Posten, along with insights from Kenyan journalist Naipanoi Lepapa. The February report highlights that workers from the Kenya-based company Sama, which is responsible for data annotation for Ray-Ban Meta, have had access to intimate and private content. Interviews conducted with over 30 Sama employees across various roles in video, image, and speech annotation for Meta's artificial intelligence systems shed light on the discomfort many feel regarding the nature of the footage they handle. Though the report's authors did not gain access to the raw materials managed by Sama or their working environment, they gathered testimonies from former Meta employees who described witnessing live data annotation for various projects. The findings indicate a troubling influx of privacy-sensitive data entering Meta’s systems, contributing to the unease among Sama's workers. Some anonymous employees recounted instances where they encountered videos recorded with the smart glasses, detailing moments including explicit scenarios, such as individuals engaging in sexual activities or using the bathroom. One employee described a particular video where a man placed the glasses on a bedside table before exiting the room, only for his partner to enter shortly after and change clothes. Another reported seeing a user's partner emerge from the bathroom unclothed, raising serious questions about privacy and consent in the use of such technology.