A visit to the doctor often means undressing, describing symptoms, or sharing health history a patient would not tell a stranger. Patients assume that conversation stays between them and their provider. Some doctors, nurses, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, and medical assistants in California have started wearing Meta’s camera and microphone-equipped smart glasses during patient appointments. The glasses look like ordinary eyewear, but they hide a camera and microphone that can record photo and video hands-free. Emery | Reddy is investigating potential claims on behalf of California patients whose provider wore this kind of camera-equipped eyewear at any point during an appointment.
Why This Is Becoming a Real Risk for California Patients
Camera-equipped smart glasses are no longer a novelty. As more providers own a pair for everyday use, more of them are wearing the glasses to work, including into exam rooms.
The trend has already drawn scrutiny. Online, the devices have picked up the nickname “pervert glasses” after a wave of videos showing people secretly recorded in public, Fortune reported. Instagram has started removing accounts that misuse the glasses for covert recording. For a patient, the concern is the same one raised by that backlash: there is often no obvious sign that the provider in the room is recording.
Healthcare has its own version of this problem. Cybersecurity firm LBMC wrote in a blog post aimed at hospitals that the glasses give off no red light and no shutter sound when they record. LBMC called this “a silent breach of one of the most sacred aspects of healthcare: trust.” Patient-safety advocates have pushed for outright bans on the devices in clinical settings, and healthcare employers are being told they can, and should, prohibit staff from wearing them around patients.
What Happens to a Recording Captured During an Appointment
Meta’s glasses can take photos, record video, livestream, and respond to voice commands, all without the wearer touching a phone. A small white LED on the frame is supposed to light up when the camera is recording. Meta says the light cannot be switched off, and that it disables the camera if someone tampers with the light.
For a patient, the practical problem is that this safeguard is easy to miss. The Electronic Frontier Foundation has noted that the light is small, that cheap workarounds to disable it have circulated online, and that unlike pulling out a phone to take a photo, there is rarely any obvious sign that a person wearing the glasses is recording at all.
There is also a second problem: where the footage goes. By default, Meta’s glasses automatically import photos and video to the Meta AI companion app, and footage captured with a voice command is sent directly to Meta’s servers, according to EFF. Some of that footage is reviewed by outside contractors for AI training, and reporting has found that reviewers have had access to highly sensitive footage, including video of people undressing.
For a medical appointment, that means a recording captured on Meta glasses does not necessarily stay between the provider and the patient. It can leave the exam room and reach Meta’s servers, and potentially a human reviewer, without the patient ever finding out.
The Law That Protects California Patients: Up to $5,000 for Recording Without Consent
California is one of a small number of states that requires all parties to a private conversation to consent before it can be recorded. Under Penal Code § 632, it is a crime to use a recording device to record a “confidential communication” without everyone’s consent. The law defines a confidential communication as any conversation the people involved reasonably expect to stay between them. A patient’s private conversation with a doctor, nurse, PA, nurse practitioner, or MA during an appointment fits squarely within that definition.
Penal Code § 637.2 gives the patient who was recorded the right to sue for civil damages: the greater of $5,000 per violation or three times their actual damages. A patient does not have to prove they were harmed to bring the claim.
A Second Layer of Protection for Patients: The CMIA
California’s Confidentiality of Medical Information Act (CMIA) adds a layer of protection specific to patients and their medical information. The CMIA generally bars a health care provider from disclosing a patient’s medical information without authorization. Smart glasses can trigger this rule too. If a recording captured on smart glasses is automatically uploaded to a third party’s servers, that upload can itself be an unauthorized disclosure of a patient’s medical information under the CMIA. Meta’s glasses do this by default.
The CMIA lets a patient sue for nominal damages of $1,000 without having to prove actual harm, plus any actual damages they can show.
Who Emery | Reddy Is Investigating This For
Emery | Reddy is looking into potential claims for California patients. This includes anyone who believes their doctor, nurse, physician assistant, nurse practitioner, or medical assistant wore Meta glasses, or another camera-equipped wearable device, during any part of an appointment. It does not matter what the provider says about whether they were recording.
- It does not matter whether the patient can prove the footage was uploaded, shared, or posted anywhere. Under Penal Code § 637.2, a patient does not have to show actual harm to bring a claim.
- No lawsuit has been filed yet. This is an investigation. Emery | Reddy is gathering information from patients across California before deciding how to proceed.
What to Do If This Happened to You
- Write down the date, time, and location of the appointment, along with the provider’s name and the practice or facility where it happened.
- Note as much detail as you can about the glasses: brand, style, and whether you saw a light or asked the provider about them.
- Save any paperwork from the visit, including the after-visit summary or intake forms.
- Avoid confronting the provider or practice on your own before speaking with an attorney. That conversation can affect a potential claim.
- Contact Emery | Reddy for a free, no-obligation case review.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it actually illegal for my doctor to wear camera glasses during my appointment?
Wearing them is not automatically illegal by itself. But using them to record a private conversation with a patient without that patient’s consent violates California’s two-party consent law, Penal Code § 632. If the recording captures your medical information and that recording is disclosed to a third party, including Meta if the footage auto-uploads, it can also violate the CMIA.
What if my doctor says the glasses weren’t recording?
That is a common response, and it may or may not be true. The recording indicator light on Meta’s glasses can be hard to see, and workarounds to disable it exist. A provider wearing camera-equipped glasses to your visit creates exactly the kind of uncertainty California’s recording law is designed to prevent. Moreover, there is no certainty that Meta, its contractors, or its AI, is not able to access video and audio through Meta’s glasses even when they are not, “officially”, recording.
Do I need proof that I was recorded to have a claim?
Not necessarily. Under Penal Code § 637.2, you do not have to prove actual harm or damages to bring a civil claim for an unlawful recording. The law guarantees you a minimum recovery either way.
Does it matter what kind of appointment it was?
Any appointment where your private conversation with a provider was recorded without consent can potentially support a claim. Appointments involving undressing, physical exams, or sensitive medical history may support a stronger claim. But they are not a requirement.
What if my provider works at a hospital or a large practice, not a private office?
It does not matter where the provider is employed. The relevant question is whether an individual provider wore a camera-equipped device and recorded a private conversation with you without consent.
Has Emery | Reddy filed a lawsuit over this?
Not yet. Emery | Reddy is investigating potential claims and gathering information from California patients before making that decision.
Do I have a legal claim?
If your doctor, nurse, PA, nurse practitioner, or MA wore Meta glasses or similar camera-equipped eyewear at any point during your appointment in California, you may have a legal claim under California’s recording and medical privacy laws. Contact Emery | Reddy at 206.207.8929 for a free, no-obligation case review to find out whether you may be entitled to compensation. No Fee Unless We Recover.
