Meta removed a hidden face‑recognition module from its smart‑glasses companion app after WIRED exposed its presence. The Meta AI app, downloaded by more than 50 million phones, now omits the NameTag libraries that could turn captured faces into biometric fingerprints. The change arrived just a day after the leak in early Friday update today again.

NameTag, first mentioned in February, was designed to compare on‑device faceprints with a local database and store unrecognized faces for later processing. WIRED’s code audit revealed the feature existed in the January build but was never activated. Meta’s response called the report misleading and denied any operational deployment in the current environment for privacy concerns.

Meta’s vice president of communications, Andy Stone, said the feature is purely exploratory and no final decision has been made. Chief technology officer Andrew Bosworth branded the coverage as dishonest. The company declined to answer ten questions about data retention, server uploads, or the existence of a faceprint database on user devices and cloud servers.

The incident underscores privacy concerns surrounding Meta’s smart‑glasses strategy and its broader push into biometric technology. By stripping the code, Meta avoids immediate regulatory scrutiny but leaves unanswered questions about data collection practices. Consumers now face uncertainty over whether their facial data could be harvested without explicit consent for every user in the world today.