Digital democracy|Digital privacy
Price of convenience: are smart wearables invading privacy?
Smart gadgets like watches, rings, and glasses are everywhere nowadays — almost everyone has one! Remember when Pope Leo XIV made headlines for wearing a smartwatch during his first mass? It sparked debates about the Pope's tech-savvy side. But with all their perks, a big question arises: are these devices safe for our privacy?
To find that out, Surfshark analyzed the companion apps of popular smart devices to see which ones respect your privacy and which might collect more data than you'd expect. Let's dive into the findings!
Smart glasses app paradox: from leading data collectors to data-free innovators
Smart glasses are a relatively new and emerging technology category, offering functionality beyond convenience and entertainment. They can be particularly valuable for individuals with specific disabilities, such as hearing or visual impairments. By integrating artificial intelligence, smart glasses can help these individuals become more independent and comfortable in their environment.¹
The analysis of smart glasses included a review of data collection practices of ten companion apps: SpaceWalker by VITURE, Meta AI, Rokid, Amazon Alexa, Lucyd — Personal AI, Solos AirGo, Halliday, Nuance Audio, Loomos, and Even Realities. On average, the companion apps we looked at collect 9 different types of data. In total, they gather data from 33 out of 35 possible types. This indicates that only one category, which encompasses the user's hand structure, hand movements, and head movement, is excluded. These data types are often relevant for VR functionality.
Wearables like the Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses require pairing with the Meta AI app, which collects up to 33 out of 35 unique data types. That's over 90% of the data types listed in the App Store. Similarly, Amazon Echo Frames connect with Amazon Alexa, which gathers 29 out of 35 unique data types. However, not all of the analyzed companion apps for smart glasses are necessarily data-hungry. According to information from the App Store, two companion apps, SpaceWalker by VITURE and Rokid, explicitly state that they do not collect any data.
Identifying various purposes for which data may be collected by smart glasses companion apps, only Meta AI and Solos AirGo state that some user data might be used for third-party advertising. Solos AirGo indicates that one data type is used for this purpose. In contrast, Meta AI lists 24 unique types, covering a full range of categories including location, contacts, financial information, user content, search or browsing history, and more. Additionally, Solos AirGo and Nuance Audio may also use data to track users across apps and websites owned by other companies for targeted advertising or to share data with data brokers. For this purpose, Nuance Audio specifies three data types: email address, device ID, and product interaction. In contrast, Solos AirGo categorizes it as other data types, creating uncertainty about which exact data is used.
Meta AI and Amazon Alexa: smart glasses companion apps navigating data use beyond common purposes
Uncertainty can also come from uses that don’t fall under third-party advertising, developer advertising or marketing, analytics, product personalization, or app functionality. That unclear section is labeled “Other Purposes” in the App Store and includes purposes not listed before.
Among the analyzed companion apps for smart glasses, only Meta AI and Amazon Alexa indicate that they might use 25 and 28 unique data types, respectively, for purposes not explicitly outlined by the App Store. Notably, Amazon Alexa may even handle sensitive information for other purposes, such as health data, racial or ethnic background, sexual orientation, pregnancy or childbirth details, disabilities, religious or philosophical beliefs, trade union membership, political views, genetic information, or biometric data.²
Ultrahuman: the only smart ring app open about data use for third-party advertising
Smart rings prove an innovative way to monitor health and wellbeing. Because they are worn close to the body, these devices can collect a vast amount of sensitive information, raising privacy invasion concerns. Once paired with a companion app, these rings track data continuously, 24/7, as long as it is worn.
An analysis of the top smart ring wearables looked at seven companion apps: Oura, Ultrahuman, RingConn, Evie Ring, Luna Ring: Rise to Brilliance, Zepp, and Circular Ring. Downloading these apps is necessary to set up the wearables and access their full features.
According to the data collection practices reported by developers in the App Store, these apps can collect up to 16 different data types, nearly half of the 35 types available. These types include categories like contact information, health and fitness data, location, user content such as photos or videos, audio data, and more. On average, smart ring companion apps collect 6 different data types. However, this varies by app. For instance, the Luna Ring: Rise to Brilliance app claims that it does not collect any data, while the Zepp app, used with the Amazfit Helio Ring, may collect up to 11 different data types, nearly double the average, and the most in this wearables category.
While data collection is essential for the functionality of wearables, it also opens the door for targeted advertising. This involves displaying third-party ads within the app or sharing data with partners who manage these ads.² Among the analyzed apps, only the companion app for the Ultrahuman Ring Air specifies that it uses user data for third-party advertising. This includes email addresses, user or device IDs, product interactions, and advertising data.
All analyzed smartwatch companion apps collect user data, setting this category apart from other wearables
Smartwatches are among the most popular types of wearable technology, and even the Pope has been seen wearing one. In this category, we reviewed the data collection practices of eight companion apps: Watch, Zepp, CMF Watch, HUAWEI Health, Withings, Garmin Connect, Fitbit: Health & Fitness, and CASIO WATCHES. Unlike other analyzed categories, all of these apps collect user data.
Among these, Fitbit: Health & Fitness by Google is the most data-hungry app, potentially collecting up to 21 different types of data, which is nearly twice the category average. On average, these apps collect 11 different data types.
Interestingly, CMF Watch and CASIO WATCHES may use data for tracking purposes, with CMF Watch collecting email addresses and CASIO WATCHES gathering data categorized as other usage data.
Could our wearables be spying on us?
Exploring the data collection practices of different wearables highlights how easily these devices could turn into surveillance tools. As people often wear multiple devices simultaneously — like the Oura ring, Apple smartwatch, and possibly even Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses — privacy risks may notably increase. With the rise of artificial intelligence features in these devices, there's a growing concern that personal information, such as unchangeable biometric data, may slip out of our control.
Privacy policy documents are often difficult to understand, leading to “privacy fatigue” — consumers feeling overwhelmed by frequent and lengthy disclosures and becoming disengaged.³ This issue was highlighted in a recent research article on privacy in consumer wearable technologies, which noted that the longest privacy policy they analyzed was 12,125 words, and the shortest was 4,408 words. While the information provided in the App Store may lack detail, it at least captures the essentials more clearly.
Wearables across various categories require different data sets to support their unique functionalities, making direct comparisons challenging. Additionally, user data doesn't always pass through companion apps, adding another layer of complexity. Despite these challenges, this study reveals that the smart glasses category is the most privacy-invasive, with some apps collecting a full range of data types. Furthermore, nearly all analyzed categories include apps that use user data for third-party advertising or tracking.
Methodology and sources
A study examined 24 companion apps that pair with wearable technology, covering three types of devices: smart rings, smart glasses, and smartwatches. The apps were selected based on the top search results for "the most popular wearable technology X," where X represents each specific wearable type.
After identifying wearables and their companion apps, the study analyzed the data collection practices of each app as outlined in the App Store. The App Store lists 35 different data types into 16 distinct categories. This data was collected on July 27, 2025.
Note: This study is limited to iOS apps only, providing focused insight into their data practices.
For the complete research material behind this study, visit here.
