Smart glasses and German privacy law: what's actually allowed under DSGVO
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If you've considered smart glasses with a camera and you live in
Germany, you've probably wondered: am I allowed to wear these in
public? At work? At my kid's school sports day? I get asked this
weekly. The short answer is "mostly yes, with three clear no-go
zones." The longer answer is worth understanding because both
Meta Ray-Ban customers and German prosecutors are actively
working out where the boundaries sit in 2026.
THE THREE LAWS THAT APPLY
§201a StGB ("Verletzung des höchstpersönlichen Lebensbereichs
durch Bildaufnahmen") makes it illegal to film someone in a
private setting where their privacy is reasonably expected —
inside a home, a hotel room, a public bathroom. Punishment can
include up to two years prison. This law is older than smart
glasses and applies to phones, hidden cameras, and smart glasses
equally.
§22 KunstUrhG (Right to one's own image) requires consent from
identifiable people before publishing photos of them. Important
nuance: this is about publishing, not capturing. You can take
the photo. You can't publish it without permission.
DSGVO / GDPR governs systematic processing of personal data.
Casual photos generally don't qualify. But if you used smart
glasses to systematically build a database of faces, you'd be
in DSGVO territory.
WHERE YOU CAN WEAR THEM
Public streets, train stations, restaurants, parks, shopping
centers, beaches, on the U-Bahn, at a concert (if the venue
allows phone cameras, it generally allows smart glasses).
Walking around, listening to music, getting translation help —
all fine. The LED recording light tells people around you when
the camera is active, which is exactly the protection both
the law and German social norms expect.
THE THREE PLACES WHERE THE LED LIGHT MATTERS
1. Schools. Photographing children in any setting where parents
haven't consented is a non-starter. Your kid's sports day with
your own kid is fine. Capturing footage that includes other
people's children, even incidentally, is not. If you wear smart
glasses at school events, keep the camera off.
2. Locker rooms, gyms, swimming pools. The law treats these as
"höchstpersönlicher Lebensbereich." Camera off, period.
3. Workplaces with confidential information. Even if your
employer permits phones, smart glasses with a recording-capable
camera may violate their data handling policy. Ask before
wearing them to internal meetings.
ALL OF OUR 14 PAIRS HAVE A VISIBLE LED
We deliberately don't sell smart glasses that hide the recording
indicator. There are models on AliExpress that do — we've tested
them and chose not to include them in our 14. The LED is the
single thing that lets bystanders consent (by walking away if
they object). Without it, every social interaction becomes
ethically complicated.
This is also a customer-protection thing. If you wear LED-less
smart glasses and someone notices, you risk a §201a confrontation
even if you weren't doing anything wrong. The LED protects you
as much as it protects others.
COMMON SCENARIOS, WITH THE ACTUAL RULE
"Can I record a video of myself walking through the Christmas
market and post it to Instagram?" Yes, if no individual person
is identifiable in close-up. Crowds and architecture are fine.
A clear shot of one person's face requires their consent before
posting.
"Can I use translation in a business meeting?" Yes for audio
translation. The camera should be off. Audio recording for
later transcription typically requires explicit consent in
Germany even for personal notes.
"Can I record a concert?" Depends on venue policy. If they
forbid phone cameras, smart glasses count. If they allow phone
cameras, smart glasses count.
"Can I wear them at the doctor?" The camera should be off.
Translation use cases are common and acceptable. Recording
medical conversations without explicit consent is a problem
even when it's your own conversation.
THE BOTTOM LINE
German law is more permissive than you probably think. The
restriction is on filming people without their knowledge in
private contexts — not on wearing smart glasses in public.
The visible LED is the protection that makes the legal and
social system work.
If you want to dig deeper, the German Federal Commissioner
for Data Protection (BfDI) has published guidance specifically
addressing wearable cameras. Worth reading if you're going to
use the camera daily.