If you're planning a cruise vacation and can't part with your Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, you might want to avoid traveling with MSC Cruises. The cruise line has updated its list of prohibited items, specifically banning smart glasses and similar wearable devices from public areas. That means your expensive Google Glass or Meta/Ray-Ban Stories could be confiscated by the cruise's security team if you break the rules.
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An obvious question is why smart glasses are subject to a ban on board, but not other recording devices such as smartphones and regular cameras.
MSC Cruises' logic is likely that there is a significant difference between someone who is obviously recording what is happening around them and someone who is secretly recording footage. A cruise passenger can relatively easily tell when someone is pointing a smartphone camera at them, but since the smart glasses sit discreetly on the user's face, it can be much harder to know when they are being recorded.
Plus, everyone these days understands that phones have cameras. Smart glasses remain relatively rare, so the average person is unlikely to realize what’s going on unless they’re specifically looking for the technology. Unfortunately, it’s not always obvious that someone is wearing smart glasses. For example, a key selling point of the latest version of the Ray-Ban Meta glasses is that they look exactly like “normal” glasses.
Companies that make smart glasses are aware of people's strong opinions about being secretly recorded, and some have included obvious recording indicators, such as a visible LED light, to let others know when the camera is active.
Some smart glasses even have built-in technology that supposedly blocks their ability to capture photos and videos if the LED light is covered. However, it is reported that such glasses can be modified to disable this protection and allow for covert recording without people nearby having any clue that they are being recorded.
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MSC Cruises likely has security concerns that extend beyond traveler privacy, including the risk that sensitive locations like bridges, backstage operations, and security checkpoints could be recorded, potentially compromising security if the footage is shared online.
Opinions among travelers are mixed on whether MSC Cruises has taken the right approach. While some have praised MSC Cruises for preventing what is seen as a growing problem, others have argued that the ban is overreaching, stating that the smart glasses can be genuinely useful as they provide instant translation, navigational assistance and assistance for those with vision or hearing impairments.
It looks like MSC Cruises may be facing some unhappy passengers. If you've invested in smart glasses and purchased a cruise ticket, you probably won't be too happy to learn that you can't use them freely on your vacation.
However, MSC Cruises appears to have weighed this against the concerns of travelers who don't want to be recorded without their permission or knowledge. For now, MSC appears to be sailing alone in implementing a strict policy against the use of smart glasses.
See also: Meta announces new Oakley Meta HSTN smart glasses
Carnival Cruise Line, for example, allows “Google-style glasses” in public areas, restricting them only during boarding operations when passengers are boarding.
