Smart eyewear such as Meta-AI Ray Ban glasses – which sport microphones, cameras and can connect to artificial intelligence – pose emerging patient privacy and other risks especially when worn in healthcare settings, said Garrett Zickgraf of consulting firm LBMC.
“At any point, these glasses could be listening, gathering private information and then potentially disclosing that,” he said. The glasses can collect and share patient images and conversation, and well as protected health information, without individuals even noticing, he said. Meta glasses have a LED indicator that turns on when in use, but there’s already an online cottage industry selling stickers that cover the light.
“PHI would be potentially recorded without notice, or even livestreamed to these social media platforms, so these glasses have a direct connection through Meta to both Facebook as well as Instagram,” he said.
“These are unmanaged devices that are either being brought in by the patients themselves, or from the particular employee of the organization, where this organization does not know this technology is in the hospital,” he said.
“Where I think this kind of differs from, for instance, cell phones in general, would be because the glasses are so inconspicuous, and because it blends in so well to the normal workforce,” he said. “People are maybe not aware of being photographed or videotaped.”
In the interview (see audio link below photo), Zickgraf also discussed:
- How smart glasses typically work;
- Potential malicious insider risks – as well as inadvertent breaches – involving smart glasses and similar devices;
- Steps healthcare entities can take to reduce security and privacy risks involving smart glasses and similar devices.
Zickgraf is a cybersecurity leader with over seven years of experience in governance, risk management and compliance. Currently serving as manager of cybersecurity consulting at consulting firm LBMC, Zickgraf specializes in helping enterprise clients, particularly in healthcare, retail and manufacturing, navigate complex security challenges and regulatory frameworks including HIPAA, NIST CSF and ISO 27001. Zickgraf has led the development of strategic cybersecurity programs and contributed to thought leadership in the field.