Surveillance Chic: When aesthetics disguises surveillance

Meta has launched the "Starfire Kylie Edition" glasses with Kylie Jenner -382 million followers on Instagram. Minimalist design, a side crystal, cute, at a price of 419 euros.

The operation is not very complicated to decipher: turn a surveillance technology into an irresistible fashion accessory.

But Kylie is not selling a product, she sells validation normalising the intrusive and wrapping it into something desirable.

When a public figure that millions trust uses controversial technology, the brain makes automatic equivalence: "if she uses it, it must be safe."

What these glasses do is capture images and audio of anyone who crosses paths with those who wear them (on the street, in the gym, on the beach, in any shared space) without warning and without the possibility of refusing. Those videos then circulate on networks with thousands of views, subjecting to public judgement people who never consented to be subjects of observation.

Two months ago the BBC published the case of a woman in London who was filmed walking to a mall by a man with smart glasses without her knowledge; the video reached 40,000 views.

When she requested the video to be deleted, she received a response by mail: this would be a "paid service". She felt exploited, helpless and vulnerable with the certainty that the file was still in the hands of whoever recorded it.

As Catharina Doria, an expert in AI ethics, points out: "When it's a fashion statement, you don't criticise technology. You focus more on appearance than content." The Diet Prada account, specialised in fashion, published this message: "A more stylish way for strangers to harass and record you."

These glasses are not just another device. Recording with the mobile raises suspicions since the gesture is visible, detectible. With these glasses, the camera is integrated into the look. Impossible to distinguish from everyday use. Always ready.

What is normalised is not only punctual surveillance. It is the erosion of the basic trust that we need to interact in shared spaces. The certainty that any moment (a conversation, a walk, a public bathroom) can be captured, distributed and monetised without our knowledge or consent.

The price we are paying to live in a hyper-digitised world is getting higher and higher.

By Rommy Artigas