It’s official: DEF CON organizers are telling the thousands of attendees about to descend on Las Vegas for the 34th annual hacker conference to leave their Meta AI creeper glasses at home – no exceptions.

DCSleestack, a longtime DEF CON "Goon" and moderator of the unofficial DEF CON subreddit, posted the news to fellow Redditors on Tuesday.

Titled “Friendly reminder - no Meta-style recording glasses at DEF CON 34,” the subreddit warned that the controversial “pervert glasses” are now strictly prohibited at the shadowy hacker gathering, which will run from August 6–9, 2026.

“Surreptitious filming is an invasion of privacy, and will be treated as a CoC violation."

– DEF CON organzizers

The post adds that there will be "no exception for recording glasses with prescription lenses” and urges attendees who need them to pack non-recording eyewear.

“If you must take pictures, use recognizable personal photo equipment like a smart phone so that your intentions are clear. Get affirmative permission from the faces in your frame,” the long-time DEF CON volunteer wrote.

The post included an 11-second video and a direct link to DEF CON's official photo policy to drive the point home.

DEF CON puts attendee privacy first

DEF CON, held annually in Las Vegas, is the world's largest and most influential hacker conference, drawing tens of thousands of security researchers, hackers, government officials, law enforcement, and technology professionals from around the world.

The move aligns with DEF CON's long-standing focus on attendee privacy, as most participants prefer not to be photographed or recorded.

In fact, to prioritize anonymity, DEF CON badges are intentionally devoid of printed names, unlike other industry conferences, including Black Hat, which traditionally takes place in Las Vegas the week before DEF CON, with many attending both conferences.

Furthermore, it is common practice among attendees to use hacker handles or pseudo names rather than their real names to help protect their real identities.

DEF CON attendees react

The policy, also detailed in an announcement posted to X by longtime DEF CON staff member and cybersecurity leader Rob Fuller, asks attendees to use recognizable devices, such as smartphones, and obtain affirmative permission before taking photos or recording other people.

“The rule is pretty simple - ask for consent first. Just ask, respect any Nos, and give people the opportunity to turn away or get out of frame if they don’t want to be in your photo,”

a Redditor explained in the online forum

So far, reaction online has ben largely supportive with one commenter summing it up bluntly: "It's time to purge those things from society."

Another Redditor agreed, posting, “I don’t think the rule is dumb I appreciate them banning camera glasses. Every example I’ve seen of people wearing them in public is people doing it to cause a scene or ‘because it’s public so they can.’

Good job defcon. It's time to purge those things from society.

undefined Joe Barrett (@BarrettJ) July 28, 2026

Echoing DEF CON’s privacy stance, another wrote: “Don’t want people recording blackmail material.”

Still, not everyone was happy with the news. This person questioned the legality of the policy.

“Honest question - if they are prescription glasses for someone legally blind can you legally tell someone they cannot wear them?”

Or take this exchange between two soon-to-be DEF CON 2026 attendees.

“Don’t you think it’s too late to send these reminders for first-timers? By then, getting a new prescription glasses is not possible,” one person said.

The other responded, “I agree; I have to wear mine. I don’t have any other choice. Wish they announced this month in advance.”

The backlash against AI glasses grows

The Meta glasses ban comes just days after Instagram announced it would begin removing prank and harassment videos filmed with the smart glasses for violating its bullying and harassment policies.

The platform, ironically owned by Meta, has already deactivated at least two influencer accounts with more than one million followers each who are known for terrorizing the public while secretly recording them.

And it doesn't stop there; in June, a security researcher found that Meta had already developed facial recognition technology for a companion app to the Ray-Ban-branded AI glasses.

And although not currently active for regular users, Meta appears to have already downloaded three AI models, biometric storage, and notification tools onto users’ phones, the researcher said.

It's also not the first time the tens of thousands of DEF CON and Black Hat attendees have been read the privacy act in anticipation of their descent on the Las Vegas strip.

In 2024, Hilton’s Resorts World Las Vegas – a popular hotel amongst Black Hat and DEF CON conference attendees – announced a first-of-its-kind policy to subject all hotel guests to mandatory “search-and-seizure-style” room checks.

The invasive policy – igniting a firestorm of condemnation among attendees – was described by the hotel as necessary to protect itself from hacker convention antics and "potentially malicious" objects, such as routers and other networking equipment.