Instagram bans harassing videos with Meta smart glasses

Instagram has begun removing videos and banning accounts that use Meta's smart glasses to harass strangers, a major policy shift announced by the platform's head, Adam Mosseri. The move, confirmed on July 24, 2026, targets content creators who surreptitiously film people in public places, often without their knowledge or consent, and post the footage for engagement.

In a statement on Instagram Stories, Mosseri said the platform will take down content that takes advantage of and harasses people, specifically citing "pickup line kind of videos." He emphasized that Instagram does not want people to be secretly recorded, harassed, and then have those videos posted on its platform. The company has already deactivated at least two prominent accounts, each with over a million followers, for violating this policy against harassing content filmed with the glasses. Meta confirmed the bans but did not specify when they occurred or detail the exact criteria for determining harassment.

This enforcement action follows months of growing public concern and documented incidents where Meta's Ray-Ban smart glasses were used for invasive recording. Videos have proliferated on social media showing...