CONFIRMED
Camera glasses are running into a growing list of rules. The Victorian Government announced on 21 October 2026 that smart glasses and other wearables will fall under the state’s school phone ban from the 2027 school year, months after New York State courts started taking them off people at the door. Meanwhile, Reuters reports that European regulators are stepping up scrutiny of Meta and EssilorLuxottica.
What we know
Victoria, Australia. The Carroll Labor government confirmed in an official media release that the mobile phone ban now extends to smart glasses and wearable devices in all Victorian schools: government, Catholic and independent. From the start of the 2027 school year, students must keep personal electronic devices, including smart glasses, switched off and stored during school hours and school activities. According to the release, exemptions for smart glasses are available only as a reasonable adjustment for people with disability, and only when no other suitable adjustment can be provided.
Vision Australia pushed back the same day. In a media statement, it said it is concerned by the ban and that the disability exemption does not address the needs of students who are blind or have low vision.
Victoria is not alone in Australia. Western Australia announced its own school ban on 22 September. The Next Web reported that the ban applies from 12 October and covers wearing, charging and storing the glasses on school premises. The ABC calls it the nation’s “most comprehensive” ban.
New York courts. Bloomberg Law obtained a July 1 memo from the Office of Court Administration. Since July 20, 2026, New York State courts have barred all headwear and eyewear with a camera, microphone, computer or other recording technology. Prescription glasses are included. The rule covers more than 1,240 courts, and anyone arriving with such glasses, court employees included, must hand them to security for safekeeping. The memo says the goal is to stop people from secretly recording proceedings in violation of the state’s Civil Rights Law and court rules.
Engadget reported that New York is the first US state to issue a blanket courthouse ban. Courts in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania had already barred smart glasses. Some federal court districts, including the Western District of Wisconsin and the Middle District of Florida, list them as prohibited on their own court pages.
Punjab. Dawn reported that Punjab announced a planned ban on camera-enabled glasses on a Monday, and the formal Section 144 order followed the next day. The Home Department secretary said the advance notice was meant to give owners time to dispose of the glasses.
Europe. Reuters reports that the European Data Protection Board said the devices facilitate covert recording, including of bystanders’ conversations. In a preliminary, non-binding statement, the EDPB urged manufacturers to combine visible recording lights, sound alerts and notifications to nearby devices. It also suggested limiting live streaming, automatically blurring bystanders’ faces and using location-based restrictions in places like hospitals and schools. Norway has taken the toughest line so far. Reuters says it plans a temporary ban on AI glasses in selected locations. Data regulators in Italy and Austria told Reuters they are investigating incidents involving pupils using smart glasses in schools.
An EssilorLuxottica spokesperson told Reuters that rules should protect people’s rights while supporting innovation. BofA analysts, cited by Reuters, see limited regulatory risk and consider an outright ban unlikely. That is an analyst view, not a regulator’s position.
What we don’t know yet
Victoria’s release does not spell out how schools will judge whether “no other suitable adjustment” exists. It also does not say whether Vision Australia’s concerns will change the exemption. Norway has not yet named which locations its ban will cover. The EDPB statement is non-binding, and nobody has confirmed whether it will become formal guidance. The Italian and Austrian investigations have no announced outcome. Beyond the details Dawn reported, the full scope of the Punjab order is not covered here.
What it means
If you wear Ray-Ban Meta style glasses as your daily prescription pair, plan around this. In New York courts, your glasses go to security even if you need them to see. Bring a plain backup pair.
For families in Victoria and Western Australia, smart glasses now get treated like phones at school. Blind and low-vision students relying on AI description features face the biggest open question.
The bigger pattern is about scale. Omdia puts global AI-glasses shipments at 8.7 million units in 2025, up 322% year on year. EssilorLuxottica and Meta held 81.3% of H1 2026 shipments. Reuters also reports that the company’s shares have roughly halved over the past year, partly because of privacy concerns. Regulators have been here before. Reuters reported that Ireland’s DPC questioned the LED indicator back in 2021, which led to a larger, blinking light. Expect the next round of pressure to target hardware design in the same way.
