Just Wearing Sunglasses Started a 'Hidden Camera'... I Tried 'Secret Filming with AI Glasses' at a Swimming Pool [I Tried Committing an Illegal Act 1]
- Input
- 2026-08-11 15:35:00
- Updated
- 2026-08-11 15:35:00
It was possible to effortlessly capture videos and photos of people in swimwear. / Photo by Reporter Seo Yoon-kyung Technology might feel a bit unfairly treated.
It has undergone continuous evolution to provide convenience to humanity, yet before it could even be properly utilized, it has been singled out as a new tool for crime. Recently, there is a technology appealing against this injustice.It is AI glasses. Is it possible to clear its name? We intend to explore ways to do so. [Financial News] #1. The Han River Park swimming pool, which has gained popularity as an urban summer retreat due to its affordable fees.Since it is an outdoor space, no one paid any attention to me wearing sunglasses. I quietly placed my hand on the right frame of my glasses.With a "ding-dong" sound, filming began. The sight of people cooling off in the pool with family, friends, and lovers was captured exactly as it happened on camera.
It was possible to effortlessly capture videos and photos of people in swimwear. / Photo by Reporter Seo Yoon-kyung Technology might feel a bit unfairly treated.No one noticed even when a light flashed from the glasses frames. #2.
The shopping mall was somewhat quiet after the evening rush. There weren't many people riding the escalators.
Standing four steps behind, the hip line of the person in front came into eye level. An LED signal indicating filming was flashing on the sunglasses frames, but no one stopped me.
#3. The lights dimmed as the movie 'Hope,' which had reached the 4 million audience mark, began.
It was possible to effortlessly capture videos and photos of people in swimwear. / Photo by Reporter Seo Yoon-kyung Technology might feel a bit unfairly treated.
Advertisements played, followed by an emergency exit announcement. There was no need to worry about what others thought.
It was possible to effortlessly capture videos and photos of people in swimwear. / Photo by Reporter Seo Yoon-kyung Technology might feel a bit unfairly treated.It was possible to effortlessly capture videos and photos of people in swimwear. / Photo by Reporter Seo Yoon-kyung Technology might feel a bit unfairly treated.
The tool used was the camera inside the 'Ray-Ban Meta AI Glasses,' a leading representative of AI glasses. Over 7 million units were sold worldwide last year alone.From swimming pools to movie theaters. How Things Change When the Location Changes A scene of someone filming a person in front using Ray-Ban Meta AI glasses on a shopping mall escalator last weekend.If you stand four steps down, your eye level aligns with the hip line of the person in front. / Photo by Reporter Seo Yoon-kyung The problem is that being able to 'take pictures' with smart glasses is a completely different issue from being 'allowed to take pictures.
' In cases where a specific user's body is filmed against their will in a place where people are wearing swimwear, such as the Han River Park swimming pool, the first law considered is the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment, etc. of Sexual Crimes.Article 14, Paragraph 1 of the current Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment, etc. of Sexual Crimes (Sexual Crimes Punishment Act) stipulates that the act of filming a person's body against their will using a camera or a mechanical device with similar functions, in a way that may arouse sexual desire or shame, is punishable.Filming without the subject's consent is punishable by imprisonment of up to 7 years or a fine of up to 50 million won. However, the crime of illegal filming is not immediately established merely because a person in a swimsuit was captured on video.
The judgment may vary depending on the specific circumstances of the filming, such as which specific body part was filmed from what angle and distance, and whether that specific part was intentionally highlighted. The risk is even greater when targeting a specific body part of a person ahead on a shopping mall escalator.
This is because if a person positions themselves to keep their body in the center of the screen and films continuously, the nature of the case differs from a situation where a person is simply included in the video by chance. There is no fundamental difference whether the filming equipment is a smartphone or smart glasses.
Since current law targets "cameras or other mechanical devices equipped with similar functions," glasses-shaped cameras can also be subject to punishment if they meet the requirements. Punishment applies even for filming movies, not people.
"Personal collection" is no exception. A movie theater promotional video filmed with Ray-Ban Meta AI glasses in front of a movie theater before the movie started.Everything from the sound to the video screen was captured properly. /Photo = Reporter Seo Yoon-kyung The applicable laws differ in movie theaters.Article 104-6 of the Copyright Act prohibits recording or publicly transmitting video works protected by copyright using recording devices without the permission of the copyright holder in movie theaters where such works are being screened. Therefore, simply filming with smart glasses instead of taking out a smartphone does not make it an exception.
It was possible to effortlessly capture videos and photos of people in swimwear. / Photo by Reporter Seo Yoon-kyung Technology might feel a bit unfairly treated.
Since the camera mounted on the glasses can also be considered a recording device, filming a movie while it is being screened may result in a violation of copyright law. Unauthorized recording inside a movie theater is not permitted merely because the purpose was for personal storage rather than uploading the video online.
It was possible to effortlessly capture videos and photos of people in swimwear. / Photo by Reporter Seo Yoon-kyung Technology might feel a bit unfairly treated.It was possible to effortlessly capture videos and photos of people in swimwear. / Photo by Reporter Seo Yoon-kyung Technology might feel a bit unfairly treated.
'Pervert Glasses' Abroad.
Police Investigation in Korea Also Underway Cases of damage caused by hidden cameras and voyeurism are occurring frequently overseas.Last July, CNN reported on a crime in which men approached strangers by asking for their contact information, filmed them, and uploaded the videos online without blurring to increase viewership.The recording indicator light could be easily covered, so the subjects were unaware.
CNN noted that there were even cases where scenes of people changing clothes or using the restroom were filmed, and reported that as the number of victims increased, the devices even acquired the stigma of being called "pervert glasses.
" In Korea as well, suspicions of unauthorized filming using AI smart glasses are leading to actual police investigations.
It was possible to effortlessly capture videos and photos of people in swimwear. / Photo by Reporter Seo Yoon-kyung Technology might feel a bit unfairly treated.
The Gangseo Police Station in Seoul is currently investigating a man suspected of unauthorizedly filming a female date using AI glasses last month.
It was possible to effortlessly capture videos and photos of people in swimwear. / Photo by Reporter Seo Yoon-kyung Technology might feel a bit unfairly treated.The man is accused of filming the woman with the recording light of the Meta AI glasses covered and then posting the footage on social media.
The police are looking into the possibility that the video included sensitive parts of the woman's body and are investigating whether to apply charges of sexual offenses.
"Illegal" Experienced Within the Boundaries of the Legal If you are worried that you may have committed an illegal act because of the aforementioned filming videos, there is no need to worry.
Strictly speaking, it wasn't hidden camera filming or voyeurism.
It was possible to effortlessly capture videos and photos of people in swimwear. / Photo by Reporter Seo Yoon-kyung Technology might feel a bit unfairly treated.
Instead of the swimming pool at Han River Park, I visited the riverside park where families were leisurely dipping their boats and captured a sketch of the scenery.
It was possible to effortlessly capture videos and photos of people in swimwear. / Photo by Reporter Seo Yoon-kyung Technology might feel a bit unfairly treated.On the escalator, I set out to film a mock shoot with a family.At the movie theater, I only filmed the movie distributor's logo video.Contrary to expectations that it would be a precarious tightrope walk between illegality and legality, the filming went smoothly.Although I obtained consent for filming, the subjects did not realize when they were being filmed.The quality of the recorded video and photos was not bad either.They were surprised by the clear footage shown after the shoot.
It was a moment when I could accept that it would be entirely possible to use it with impure intentions.
The AI glasses were, quite literally, just sunglasses at the swimming pool, the shopping mall, and the movie theater.
[email protected] Seo Yoon-kyung Reporter