Australia probes app used in cheap smart glasses over privacy fears

Smart glasses, which enable users to take photos, record videos, listen to music, make phone calls, translate text or engage with AI assistants, have come under scrutiny in Australia. The country's data protection watchdog, the OAIC, is probing the China-based firm responsible for the HeyCyan app used in the budget Anko smart glasses.

These affordable smart glasses retail for as low as A$89 (US$62) in stores like K-mart across the nation. The OAIC has reached out to various companies, including Meta, Kmart, Google, and Shenzhen Qingcheng, questioning their data recording practices and storage locations. However, Shenzhen Qingcheng has yet to respond to the OAIC's preliminary inquiries, leading Privacy Commissioner Carly Kind to express concerns about the firm's handling of personal information.

Kind also called on retailers to reconsider selling the glasses due to the ongoing investigation. Given the identified risks, she urged responsible businesses to ponder the suitability of continuing to offer these devices for sale.