Australian PoliticsIn recent weeks the devices, dubbed "pervert glasses" by some critics for their capacity to film in secret, have inspired two Australian petitions calling for restrictions on their sale and import which attracted tens of thousands of signatures.
Now the Greens, with support of independents, plan to launch a bill when parliament next sits to halt the import of such glasses as well as other wearable recording devices for at least 12 months, until tougher privacy protections are passed into law.
"If we end up having millions of these devices in the country, there'll be no place that's free for your privacy," Greens senator David Shoebridge said.
"Right now it's glasses, but in a month's time it's almost certainly going to be earbuds, maybe it'll be a lapel pin, maybe it'll just be your T-shirt, I don't know".
He said parliament had a narrow window of time to block their large scale importation before such devices "wash through society".
"Maybe we should think ahead for once," Senator Shoebridge said.
People drastically under-estimate how often they are observed by camera already.
If you're in public in a place with 50 people within 100m of you, you are very likely already under the gaze of more than one camera. If you are in a place open to the public, you are likely already under the case of more than one camera. If you are on a main road, you are likely being watched. I'm even starting to see cameras watching cycle paths.
We aren't at USA/England/China levels of surveillance, yet - but it's pretty ubiquitous. About the only place that's free for your privacy now is your home, maybe your friends'/family homes and places where nobody else is around. Want privacy? Head out of town. Don't take your phone.
leave society if you want privacy, but good luck
I was thinking it would be better if they had a big 1990's camcorder style red light on them when recording but this'll do
Gopro's are still obvious enough
The Facebook ones do have a light, but there are guides online to show you how to cut the cable to disable it.
should be hardwired, if the cable is cut the camera doesn't work
Good move! And only allow ones that doesnt have function to record (e.g. to help the visually-challenged).
I guess this ship already sailed.
Genuinely there are cameras everywhere and majority of society doesn't typically seem to care any more. I see people walking into public bathrooms, phones out. And the odds are they are texting or whatever, but no one bats an eye even though there are cameras on the back and front of the thing.
Never saw that happen with an old camcorder.
I was chuckling, imagining a guy with a camcorder in a public toilet.
