How to know your eclipse glasses are genuinely safe (EN ISO 12312-2)
Around every eclipse, cheap and unverified "eclipse glasses" flood the market. Because the damage from looking at the Sun through the wrong filter can be permanent — and often painless — it's worth knowing how to tell genuinely safe glasses from the rest.
1. Look for EN ISO 12312-2
EN ISO 12312-2 is the international safety standard for filters used to look directly at the Sun. Genuine solar eclipse glasses are certified to it. If a product doesn't clearly reference this standard, treat it with caution.
2. Check for CE marking
Safe eclipse glasses sold in the UK and EU carry the CE mark, showing the product is declared to meet the relevant safety requirements. At Eclipse Glasses UK our lenses are CE marked and every batch is independently tested by a leading German laboratory.
3. Sunglasses are never enough
No sunglasses — however dark, polarised or expensive — are safe for looking directly at the Sun. They're built to cut everyday glare, not to reduce the Sun's intense visible and infrared light to a safe level, and they let through thousands of times more light than is safe.
4. Inspect before every use
Even certified glasses must be checked each time. Never use a pair whose filter is scratched, torn, punctured or creased — discard it and use another. Supervise children at all times, and never use eclipse glasses with cameras, binoculars or telescopes (those need their own special solar filters).
The simple rule
If you can't confirm EN ISO 12312-2 and CE marking, don't risk your eyesight on it. Our certified Eclipse Glasses UK are EN ISO 12312-2 compliant, CE marked, German lab-tested, and dispatched from the UK within 2 working days.