Hans Anders, one of the largest optician chains in the Netherlands, has stopped selling Meta’s Ray-Ban camera glasses for now. It told the Dutch news agency ANP it will wait for the debate about smart glasses before deciding whether and how to sell them again. Reuters reports the pause covers Belgium too.
New to this? Read it in simple words
- A big Dutch optician chain stopped selling Meta’s camera glasses for now.
- People worry the glasses can film others without them noticing.
- The chain will wait for the public debate before it decides again.
- Meta says a light always shows when the glasses film.
- Smart glasses
- Glasses with a built-in camera, speakers and an AI assistant.
- Privacy regulator
- A government body that makes sure personal data is handled lawfully.
- Consumentenbond
- The Dutch consumer association, which tests products and speaks for buyers.
What the chain did
Hans Anders confirmed to ANP that it has stopped selling the glasses with immediate effect, after a report in the AD newspaper, NOS reports.
It gives the unrest over the glasses’ privacy risks as the reason. It wants to wait for the discussion to settle, then decide whether and how to sell them again.
Reuters reports that the chain cited “ongoing public and political debate surrounding smart glasses” and paused sales in the Netherlands and Belgium. Dutch outlets mention only the Netherlands.
From NOS and Reuters. No regulator ordered the pause; the chain chose it.
The pressure behind it
The Dutch privacy regulator, the Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens, has warned that videos showing identifiable people cannot generally be shared without their permission.
The consumer group Consumentenbond said this week it would go to court with other groups. NOS says the demand is that Meta stop selling within two weeks; Reuters describes it as making the glasses comply with privacy law.
Last week the Dutch parliament asked for a clear ban on camera glasses, NOS reports. The government is waiting for European advice on camera and AI glasses, expected this autumn.
What Meta says
Every pair with a camera has “a bright light on the front that blinks when you take a photo or video — it can’t be turned off”, Meta told Reuters.
Consumentenbond says its own tests found the glasses could still film with the light covered. That is the group’s finding; we did not test it.
Hans Anders has 776 stores in five European countries and belongs to Nexeye, owned by KKR, Reuters reports.
Sources
Every fact in this story comes from the sources below. Open them to check our work.
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- 2Research · October 2, 2026Dutch eyewear chain Hans Anders halts sale of Meta glasses, citing privacy concerns Reuters (via The Star)
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Hans Anders gave its statement to ANP; we found no release on its own site. We read NOS in Dutch and compared Reuters and Hart van Nederland. Reuters says the pause also covers Belgium and Dutch outlets do not, so we credit Belgium to Reuters. We left out a price that only one outlet gives. The light test is Consumentenbond’s claim.