The Norwegian government wants to temporarily restrict the use of glasses equipped with cameras and artificial intelligence functions in selected public places. The list could include parks, beaches, museums, shopping centres and public events, as well as schools, playgrounds, doctors’ offices, swimming pools and gyms with changing rooms. The reason is straightforward: the government is concerned that people near users of such devices could be photographed, filmed or recorded without their knowledge. Oslo is not proposing a complete ban, but wants to determine whether existing regulations are sufficient to control a new category of wearable devices.
Glasses equipped with a camera differ from a traditional smartphone primarily in the way the camera is used. A smartphone generally has to be taken out of a pocket, pointed in a specific direction and held in front of the user. With smart glasses, image recording can take place much more discreetly because the device remains on the user’s face.
Norwegian Minister of Digitalisation and Public Governance Torgeir Micaelsen highlighted precisely this problem. As he said, he is concerned that new and increasingly advanced technologies are being introduced at a time when people can be photographed, filmed or recorded without being aware that they are being recorded.
This changes the nature of the privacy debate. The issue is no longer only whether the owner of a device can legally record a particular person. There is also the question of whether a person in a public space should be able to recognise that they have just entered the field of view of a camera.
The Norwegian government therefore wants to identify places where the risk of such recording is particularly significant. The proposed restrictions could cover spaces where people regularly spend time, as well as places where privacy is especially important.
Parks, schools and doctors’ offices are on the list
The restriction being considered by the Norwegian government would apply to specific locations rather than universally. The locations under consideration include parks, beaches, museums, shopping centres and public events. These are spaces where it would be difficult for every person near a glasses user to give consent to being recorded.
Places associated with children are even more sensitive. Norway is considering applying the rules to schools, playgrounds and youth clubs. In these cases, the issue is not limited to the image itself, but also includes the possibility of recording sound and the subsequent use of the material.
Another category consists of places where people are generally expected to have a greater degree of privacy. The government lists doctors’ offices, swimming pools and gyms equipped with changing rooms. In such locations, even the suspicion that a device may be recording images or sound can itself create problems.
Norway does not, however, want to prohibit private use of the glasses. The government stresses that the devices would still be usable where other people are not exposed to being recorded without their consent. This suggests that future regulations are intended to focus not on the technology itself, but on the specific context in which it is used.
It is not yet known which glasses would be covered by the restriction
One of the most difficult elements of the proposal will be defining exactly what should be considered a device subject to regulation. Technology is rapidly moving beyond conventional glasses with cameras.
The Norwegian government wants to examine several possibilities. Regulation could apply to glasses equipped with a camera and sound recording capabilities. Another option would be to cover glasses that, in addition to a camera, also have artificial intelligence functions. A broader version of the rules could also cover other wearable devices if they have a camera, the ability to record sound or AI functions.
This distinction is important because the boundary between “AI glasses” and other wearable devices will become increasingly unclear. If regulations are written exclusively with one type of product in mind, new devices could quickly fall outside their scope.
The Norwegian government also plans to appoint an expert group to advise on the creation of permanent national regulations concerning wearable technology. This means that the temporary restrictions are likely to be the beginning of a broader debate rather than the final solution to the problem.
This is not yet a ban on AI glasses
Oslo stresses that it is not planning a complete ban. The aim is to introduce temporary restrictions in specific locations and then prepare more permanent rules governing the use of technology that records images and sound.
The Norwegian government wants to present the bill to parliament as quickly as possible. At the same time, an expert group is expected to be established to address broader rules concerning wearable devices.
For manufacturers of such devices, this means the emergence of another type of regulatory risk. Technology marketed as a more convenient way of accessing information and artificial intelligence could in some places become a device subject to specific restrictions.
The issue could be particularly important for eyewear manufacturers that want to develop AI functions without giving up cameras, microphones or permanent connections to digital services. The more functions a device receives, the harder it will be to treat it like ordinary glasses.
Norway is opening a broader debate about privacy
The Norwegian initiative is part of a broader response to the development of smart glasses equipped with cameras. Their popularity is growing, while an increasing number of functions can be performed without reaching for a phone.
For the user, this means convenience. For a person nearby, however, it creates the possibility of appearing in front of a camera without a clear signal that they are being recorded. In the case of devices using AI, there is another element: the material may not only be stored, but also processed by a system in real time.
This difference could determine the future of regulation. Governments will have to answer not only the question of whether other people can be recorded, but also what rules should apply to the automated processing of images and sound from public spaces.
For now, Norway wants to address the problem by restricting the use of devices in specific locations. If the solution is adopted, it could become one of the first examples of regulation designed specifically for a world in which a camera no longer has to be located in a phone or clearly pointed at the person being recorded.
