The app is called Nearby Glasses.
All it does is scan for smart glasses nearby and warn you.
It’s on the Google Play Store, and the code is open-source on GitHub.
It works by scanning for the Bluetooth signals certain smart glasses emit so your phone can “see” them and then it alerts you.
The hobbyist developer, Yyes Jeanrenaud, said it’s imperfect. It can generate false positives (like with some VR headsets), and they don’t want people walking away with a false sense of security.
Still, I think it’s interesting that people are building tools to push back as surveillance tech becomes more normalized.
As someone deeply concerned about privacy in the digital age, I found the Nearby Glasses app to be a refreshing tool that empowers users to stay informed about smart glasses nearby. With companies like Meta planning to integrate facial recognition into their smart glasses, the possibility of covert surveillance is becoming more real. This app works by detecting Bluetooth signals emitted by certain smart glasses, effectively allowing your phone to ‘see’ them and warn you about their presence. In my experience, using Nearby Glasses was fairly straightforward; installing it from the Google Play Store took just a few minutes. While the developer, Yyes Jeanrenaud, openly acknowledges the app is not perfect and can occasionally flag false positives—such as VR headsets—it still serves as a valuable early warning system to avoid unwanted monitoring. It’s especially interesting that this project is open-source on GitHub, inviting community contributions to improve its functionality and accuracy. I appreciate how such technology highlights an important conversation about privacy and consent as surveillance tech becomes more common. Unlike other security apps focused on data protection, Nearby Glasses addresses the physical aspect of being around devices that can potentially track or record without your knowledge. For anyone wary of smart glass surveillance or just curious about their surroundings, this app is a practical and innovative step forward. Moreover, this experience encouraged me to learn more about the broader implications of wearable tech. It’s clear that as smart glasses and similar devices proliferate, tools that alert users to their presence will be increasingly important. I recommend trying out Nearby Glasses if you value privacy and want to stay one step ahead in this evolving tech landscape.