Unauthorized filming with VR headset: Meta Quest 3 misappropriated by first buyers
For the first time, people are daring to wear the new Meta Quest 3 VR headset in public, which may not come as a surprise considering Mark Zuckerberg's description of the Quest 3 as the first "mainstream reality headset". However, wearing virtual reality headsets in public has repeatedly led to controversy and even assault in the past due to data protection concerns.
For the Quest 3, while games are the most common category of apps, about half of which are mixed reality games, the combination of real world and gaming is particularly appealing to many people.
OK don't be mad. But someone had to do it.
— CIX (@CixLiv) October 16, 2023
walked into a cafe in mixed reality pic.twitter.com/WSJEMWuG00
After the first recordings in- and outside of a San Francisco café, where not even the name of the café was hidden, others dared to do more, such as Jay Mayo, who filmed strangers at the New York Comic Con. Kukurio59 filmed himself waiting for an elevator, which in itself is a socially awkward situation.
About ten years ago, the use of Meta's predecessor, Google Glass, was so frowned upon by the public that there was even an attack on a woman wearing Google Glass as well as an attack on an XR pioneer in Paris when he put on similar VR glasses. Since then, however, public opinion has shifted considerably.
For example, many have become accustomed to smartphones being used for filming and tolerate live stories being produced on every corner for Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and the like, even if it means invading the privacy of strangers. Small businesses, meanwhile, now generally consider it an advantage to have a social media presence. So it may well be that the virtual reality glasses will be less subject to public criticism this time around.
With Quest 3, however, it is difficult to tell if a video is being recorded. There is a small, slowly pulsating LED light, but this also lights up independently of the recording.
In contrast to the inconspicuous, smart glasses from Meta made by Ray-Ban, for which data protection declarations have been published, as well as guidelines such as actively informing people when they are being recorded, there do not seem to be any such guidelines for the Quest 3. Either way, it is likely that many will have the feeling of being recorded when someone enters the room with a relatively imposing-looking Quest 3.
Quelle(n)
The Verge | Wired | Teaser-Bild: @kukurio59 (TikTok)
