Topic: Street View - Privacy Issues? (Page 1 of 1)

Google Street View is stirring up some interesting issues.

I was looking at the views of SF last week and it blew my mind how far they can now zoom in and the clarity/resolution (SF apparently is the best, much better than NYC).

Personally, I think this is just great, but some people see potential privacy issues...like the one on the drudge report (apparently) where you can see a guy, clearly recognizable if you knew him, outside some porn place.

Your Views?



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You're on a public street. End of story.

The most recent numbers I heard for London England were 5 thousand cameras (closed circuit) and the average Londoner is filmed 300 times a day.

There's something about no expectation of privacy in public places.

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NoJive said:

You're on a public street. End of story.

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Not all the time. Actually, one of the most talked about photos is of Steve Jobs' house - so everything is fair game...not just about public streets/public areas anymore.

If you live off a public street in a fenced in, sheltered home and you like to sunbathe buck nekkid..are you fair game for street level maps? Keep in mind we are not talking about surveillance cameras but rather the eye in the sky.



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(Edited by SleepingWolf on 08-07-2007 18:19)

I think anything I could see while walking down the street is fair game. If someone has a privacy fence up, then I can't see in from the street, and the cameras shouldn't be able to either (assuming we're talking about private property). If it's a public place (restaurant, hospital, school, etc), then it's public.

Pretty clear line I think. Of course I haven't put any kind of deep thought into it, so I'm sure someone can come up with some corner case that is controversial.

Are you allowed where the camera is? Can you see what the camera sees? If yes, then the camera should be allowed there. If you like to dance around naked in front of a open window in plain sight of the general public, then that's your choice and if someone puts a camera there, you get to be one film.

Are those pictures of Steve Jobs' house taken from public property or private property? Is anyone trespassing?

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Shoo shoo, stop peeking in my back garden Gosh you can even make out the bird bath



(Edited by Tao on 08-08-2007 01:49)

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Lord_Fukutoku said:
Are you allowed where the camera is? Can you see what the camera sees? If yes, then the camera should be allowed there.

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Jobs was caught naked in his hot tub, in a very compromising position with an iPhone.


The camera(s) can see potentially anything from their perch on satellites. The first generation of Google Earth and Google Maps allowed you to view large structures like football stadiums fairly clearly. The current generation allows you to clearly make out a co-worker picking his nose in the bleachers. The third and fourth generations will probably allow you to see an ant in your backyard.

So, no... there isn't any trespassing, not in the conventional physical way - fences aren't an obstacle for this type of camera.


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(Edited by SleepingWolf on 08-08-2007 02:10)

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Tao said:

Shoo shoo, stop peeking in my back garden Gosh you can even make out the bird bath (Edited by Tao on 08-08-2007 01:49)

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Tao: with the San Francisco quality street level, you could see if the bird was a guy or a girl, even if you were colour blind.


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SleepingWolf said:

The camera(s) can see potentially anything from their perch on satellites.

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It sounds like you're talking about two different things...

As far as I understand, the "Street View" cameras aren't the cameras on satellites. They're on top of cars that are driving around on public streets, right where you can drive and walk. Can they see anything that you wouldn't be able to go see? I don't think so. No privacy issues here.

The images from Google Earth are from satellites. Can they see stuff that you couldn't see? Probably. If you're that concerned about being seen from one of them, don't leave your top secret stuff out in the open. If you're just worried about being coming out of a topless bar, that sounds like a personal problem to me

Just my thoughts... I could be wrong...

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Thank the gods that invisibility cloaks are just around the corner!

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Lord_Fukutoku said:

It sounds like you're talking about two different things...

As far as I understand, the "Street View" cameras aren't the cameras on satellites.

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Yes, you're right - I'm mixing the two up - but they both point to potential privacy issues. And yes, this might be acceptable in the UK but not everywhere.

I'm with WS - invisibility rules.


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