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A Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agent wore Meta’s AI smart glasses to a June 30 immigration raid outside a Home Depot in Cypress Park, Los Angeles, according to photos and videos of the agent verified by 404 Media.
Meta does not have a contract with CBP, and 404 Media was unable to confirm whether or not the agent recorded any video using the smart glasses at the raid. Based on what we know so far, this appears to be a one-off case of an agent either wearing his personal device to an immigration raid, or CBP trying technology on an ad-hoc basis without a formal procurement process. Civil liberties and privacy experts told 404 Media, however, that even on a one-off basis, it signals that law enforcement agents are interested in smart glasses technology and that the wearing of smart glasses in an immigration raid context is highly concerning.
“There’s a nonzero chance the agent bought the Meta smart glasses because they wanted it for themselves and it’s the glasses they like to wear. But even if that’s the case, it’s worth pointing out that there are regulatory things that need to be thought through, and this stuff can trickle down to officers on an individual basis,” Jake Laperruque, deputy director of the Center for Democracy and Technology’s security and surveillance project, told 404 Media. “There needs to be compliance with rules and laws even if a technology is not handed out through the department. The questions around [smart glasses are ones] we’re going to have to grapple with very soon and they’re pretty alarming.”
