ZuckOff alerts users to nearby Meta glasses amid privacy backlash

Meta’s AI‑powered smart glasses have become a flashpoint for privacy advocates. A free app called ZuckOff now tells you when a pair of those glasses is within earshot.¹²³⁴⁵ The app’s launch has turned a vague fear into a concrete alert, and it has already drawn interest from regulators.¹⁵

Pawel Szydlowski, a 30‑year‑old Polish programmer, released ZuckOff in August on Apple’s App Store.¹²⁴⁵ Business Insider reports more than 5,000 downloads on iOS and about 1,000 on Google Play.¹²³⁴ The app scans Bluetooth traffic for signatures that match Meta‑branded frames such as Ray‑Ban Meta, Oakley Meta, and Snap Spectacles.¹⁴⁵ When a match appears, the main screen shows an estimated distance.¹² A paid Pro tier, priced at $25, adds background monitoring, a homescreen widget, and CSV export.¹⁴

How ZuckOff reads Bluetooth fingerprints

Szydlowski bought several models of Meta glasses and recorded the Bluetooth packets they broadcast.¹⁵ Each device emits a unique identifier and a manufacturer code.¹⁵ By cataloguing these values, he built a digital fingerprint that the app can compare against live scans.¹⁴⁵ If the identifier and manufacturer code line up, ZuckOff flags the presence of a glass.¹⁵

The detection is limited to proximity.¹² The app cannot tell whether the glasses are actively recording, nor can it identify the wearer.² It merely converts an invisible Bluetooth signal into a visual cue. That limitation is intentional; the app does not interfere with the signal, which makes it harder for Meta to claim a legal violation.⁴

Privacy concerns that drove the app’s creation

Meta’s glasses have been described in the press as “perv glasses” after videos surfaced of women being filmed without consent.⁵⁶⁷ A BBC investigation in January linked dozens of Instagram accounts to such footage, one clip showing a 21‑year‑old woman’s face and phone number and garnering 1.3 million views. The recording LEDs on the devices can be disabled with simple hardware hacks, allowing covert filming.³⁷⁸

Szydlowski says he built ZuckOff after seeing “tales of dirtbags recording themselves perving on women.”⁵ He told Business Insider that European Union regulators have already reached out for information about the app.¹ The developer argues that society has a right to know when a camera is present, even if it cannot confirm active recording.⁵⁸

Regulatory and corporate response

Meta has tried to mitigate the backlash. In July the company announced a firmware update that disables glasses whose recording LEDs have been tampered with.²³⁵⁷⁸ CTO Andrew Bosworth posted an Instagram video insisting the camera is meant to be visible.¹²⁵ Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri later said the platform would ban accounts that post harassment videos filmed with the glasses.⁶

Despite those moves, venues from New York nightclubs to schools have begun outright bans.⁶⁸ The nightclub Basement announced a permanent ban on anyone bringing the glasses inside. California and other jurisdictions have introduced statutes that criminalize disabling recording lights or filming people without consent.⁶ ZuckOff does not replace legal protection, but it gives users a warning that could prompt them to leave a space or confront a wearer.

Market reaction and the app’s limits

Meta sold roughly 7 million pairs of its smart glasses in 2025, according to the source material.⁸ The volume suggests a sizable installed base, which fuels both the privacy concerns and the demand for detection tools. However, ZuckOff’s free tier only offers on‑demand scans; continuous alerts require the Pro subscription.²⁴

The app’s business model hinges on a niche market of privacy‑conscious users. Because it merely reads Bluetooth signals, it sidesteps the legal gray area of interfering with Meta’s hardware.⁴ That design choice may protect it from takedown requests, but it also means the app cannot confirm actual recording.⁴ Users must interpret a proximity alert as a possibility, not proof.

What to watch

The next few months will reveal whether regulators treat ZuckOff as a privacy‑enhancing service or as a competitor to Meta’s ecosystem. Watch for any formal EU or U.S. statements on Bluetooth‑based detection tools. Meta’s upcoming firmware releases could also alter the Bluetooth fingerprint, potentially breaking ZuckOff’s database. Finally, keep an eye on adoption numbers; a surge past the current 6,000‑plus installs could pressure venues to adopt detection policies or push lawmakers toward stricter recording‑light statutes.¹²³⁴

Updates

• 2026-11-13 — The Xiaomi 18 Pro’s rear displays support Google apps, Spotify, and custom GenAI apps (source)
• 2026-10-07 — The Social Reckoning is a timely reminder that we shouldn’t trust Meta (source)