Leveling Up the Safety, Privacy, & Convenience of the Meta Quest 3 Family of MR Headsets
We just announced Meta Quest 3S, the most affordable way to experience cutting-edge full-color mixed reality. From entertainment, fitness, and games to simply hanging out with friends, Quest 3S is fun for the whole family and built with features that help create a safe and enjoyable experience for everyone. Like its predecessors, Quest 3S pushes innovation forward, and it’s also built with your privacy and safety in mind. We’re excited to share the details of new features we’re launching that will enhance your privacy and give you more control over your data. While these features launch with Quest 3S on October 15, they’ll also be available on Quest 2, 3, and Pro headsets.
Privacy Settings Update
Coinciding with the launch of Quest 3S, you’ll see simpler, more transparent, and easier to use Privacy Settings. We’re simplifying the settings by making them consistent across the Meta Horizon OS. Now your settings controls on the headset and in Meta Horizon Worlds will be the same and you can control them from Quest’s settings controls or Horizon Worlds’ settings controls.
We’re also updating Active Status to have three simple options: Joinable, Online, and Appear offline. Here’s what that means:
- Appear offline: Followers see that you’re offline. For preteens, this is the default.
- Online: Followers see that you’re online or were recently online.
- Joinable: Followers see what app/world you’re in. Allows others to join you in that app/world.
Previously, changing your Active Status or meeting up with a friend in an app or world required several steps. With this update, we’re making the control for Active Status accessible in the People Tab, so you can easily adjust the setting. Finally, we’re changing how your activity audience is controlled based on your profile setting.
If your profile is set to “Private,” then only your followers can see the apps you use and your achievements or high scores associated with those apps. If you have your profile set to “Public,” anyone can see that information. These changes will roll out to teen and adult Meta accounts in October and in November for parent-managed Meta accounts.
Privacy Indicator & Permissions History
We always want to provide you with transparency on our platform so you have more control and visibility over your experience. For example, last year we introduced the Store Privacy Tab, which provides product description pages in the Meta Horizon Store, making it easier for you to understand the types of data an app or game may access before you download it. This year, we’re introducing two more features that increase transparency about the data types an app or game may be accessing after you’ve installed it.
Beginning with Quest 3S, we’re introducing a privacy indicator that lets you know when certain privacy related features are currently in use—and which of the apps in your library are currently using them. That includes your microphone, location, spatial data, eye tracking (for Quest Pro only), and Natural Facial Expressions (for Quest Pro only).
We’re also introducing Permissions History, which allows you to view sensor and device permission access by installed apps through a new panel within your Settings. Permissions History will show which of your installed apps accessed your microphone, location, spatial data, eye tracking (for Quest Pro only), Natural Facial Expressions (for Quest Pro only), and storage data, over the last seven days.
Enhancing the Shared Device Experience: Account Creation, Switching Improvements, & Secondary Users
Quest is fun for the whole family, so we’re making it easier to add new accounts and switch between them on the headset. You’ll now be able to add additional accounts to your devices using an email invite. We’re also streamlining the process to create new accounts both on your headset and via the Meta Horizon mobile app, including for parent-managed Meta accounts, so you and your family members can enjoy the age-appropropriate MR experiences developed for them. We’re also expanding capabilities for secondary users on a headset, such as casting from the headset to their own copy of the Meta Horizon app. These new updates will ensure that users are in the right account for them, and also enhance the experience for secondary users.
Sensor Lock
It’s important to ensure your privacy is preserved when you’re not using your Quest. That’s why we’re introducing the new sensor lock feature, which cuts power to your headset’s external cameras and microphones in certain situations, like when the headset goes to sleep. And those sensors will stay powered off until you physically press the headset’s power button—so you stay in control. Prior Quest devices turn off external cameras and microphones in software instead of being powered off directly.
We believe mixed reality should be for everyone, which means we have a responsibility to design and build our products with everyone’s safety in mind. We pride ourselves on our ability to offer trusted features for experienced gamers, parents who want their kids to enjoy mixed reality, and pre-teens who are just beginning their adventures with mixed reality. With Quest 3S, we hope we’re offering you the best experiences possible in mixed reality, with the privacy and safety features that enable you to enjoy those experiences worry-free. We’re excited for you to try and see for yourself.
