Meta to Quest Owners: We're Going to Start Collecting More VR Headset Data

If you use a Quest 2, prepare for more data collection. Meta is going to start using all kinds of user information from its VR headsets in an effort to improve the products. 

The company today sent an email to Quest 2 and Quest Pro owners about collecting more data from users, which it says will be “anonymized,” stripping out the personal details.    

“By default, Meta collects the data required for your Meta Quest to work properly. With our next software release, we'll also start collecting anonymized data,” Meta wrote in the message. “We use anonymized data about your device usage for things like building better experiences and improving Meta Quest products for everyone.”

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Even so, according to Meta’s help page, the anonymized data collection can cover all kinds of information described in the “Supplemental Meta Platforms Technologies Privacy Policy,” which was updated in October. 

Ars Technica notes the data collection could include “your audio data, when your microphone preferences are enabled, to animate your avatar’s lip and face movement.” Meta can also harvest data pertaining to facial expressions, eye and body tracking, voice interactions, along with any raw images taken from the VR headset’s sensors. 

It’s also unclear how Meta will anonymize the collected data. But sometimes efforts to strip out the personal details from such data can fail — especially if the information is ever combined with other sources. Last week, the FTC fined antivirus provider Avast for selling users' anonymized browsing data to marketing firms, when in reality the data could still be linked to real people. 

For now, Meta told PCMag that "we are constantly evolving our privacy models to maximize the use of anonymized data over identifiable data where we can, so we began collecting anonymized data to help us improve Meta Quest products. Anonymized data is more privacy-protective for our users because it does not identify them. This is one way we’re continuing to deploy privacy-enhancing technologies for people who use Quest."

Recommended by Our Editors

Ahead of Apple's Vision Pro Release, VR and AR Companies are Stepping Up Their Game

Apple Vision Pro vs. Meta Quest Pro: Mixed Reality Matchup

Using Your Meta Quest 3 Outside Is a Terrible Idea

The company may also want the data to help it compete against Apple, which has entered the VR/augmented reality market with its own headset, the Vision Pro. Still, Meta's privacy approach could anger consumers.

In contrast, Apple has said it designed its own headset to minimize such data collection. “From protecting where you look to storing Optic ID data on-device, Apple Vision Pro protects your information,” the company wrote in its own privacy policy.