Street View should show places, no embarrassing people. In Argentina, a police officer learned that a street car photographed him in the difficult way naked In his back yard in 2017.
A Court of Appeal has now instructed Google to pay for it USD $ 12,500 or € 11,000call it a “flagrant” Invasion within the limits of his house, “Behind a fence larger than the average person.” Google argued that the wall was not high enough; The judges disagreed and emphasized the dignity and limits of private space.
How Google Street View blurred – and where it can miss
Google's process is usually automatic: Cars collect panoramas and software Uncertificated faces and license plates by default. This usually protects passers -by and drivers, but it does not guarantee that the system catches Full bodiesEspecially when the face is rejected or closed.
Google's own guidelines refer to a safety valve: everyone can request additional conspiracy of A House, car or body Use the “Report a problemLink in the picture. Here the court effectively said that the burden could not only rest on the victim. Finally, as soon as it is on the Internet, it is already too late. Google Street View should have prevented the publication at all.
What Google usually blurred (and why Street View pulled the exam)
- Faces (adults and children) Preventing identification and reducing the harassment risk.
- mark To avoid Doxxing vehicles/owners.
- Additional objects on request Houses, cars or body of a person.
Animals are usually not blurred by Google, even though the internet once in a giggle blurred cow-A example of overzealous recognition, not politics.
These rules exist to compensate for the benefits of Google Street View with data protection and local legal norms.
Other cases that have been shaped Google Street View P.rivalry
- Boring v. Google (USA): A couple in Pennsylvania sued after a street car had driven to the entrance and photographed her home. In the end they received nominal damage, but the case signaled that even “public” mapping can exceed private lines.
- National supervisory authorities: Switzerland brought Google to court for compliance with Street View; Japan forced again after cameras had looked over fences. Both pushed Google to adapt the practices regional for region.
- Wi-Fi data acquisition (A separate controversy): US states and collective lawsuits ended in multi-million dollar settlements after Street View cars collected data from unsecured networks.
What counts as privately against publicly in the digital age
Dishes keep returning to the same idea: theirs home Is something special. A picture taken by the street can still violate privacy if it reveals intimate details inside The private domain – especially if the topic is naked and identifiable by address. Fences and walls are important, as are the camera height. The Argentine judgment underlines that Street View can not only rely on the face. It must prevent harmful exposure to the entire body if the scene is clearly private.
What you can do now (as a user)
Search your address Google Street View And click on a panorama that shows you, your children or your home in a way that feels uncertain. Ask an additional blurring of your house (permanently), car or body. When a neighbor has uploaded the pictures, Google uses similar rules to 360 video submissions and offers tools for Takedown reviews. Depending on the volume, the solution usually arrives within days to weeks.
The Argentine case does not end with Google Street View. It illustrates its responsibility. Show the world, not the intimate parts of it. If the service is based on broader detectors, faster takedowns and clearer tools for users, the card remains useful without transforming into a catalog of private moments. This is privacy through design, not excuses – exactly what this judgment has pushed on Google.