Blurring the Lines
The line between what's private and what's public has always been hazy at best and downright confusing at worst. But Google's not-so-new application, Google Street View, is still fanning the flames of privacy fires all over the globe. Articles about resistance coming from Germany, Italy, Japan, and the Czech Republic are particularly intriguing. Not to mention the myriad of Youtube Videos and Blogs that received their creative spark from Google. So how can something that has piqued so many people's curiosity be bad? Probably for that very reason: It's piqued a lot of curiosity.
Ever wonder what it would be like to be a voyeur or a private investigator? Apparently many of us have, judging by the number of videos you find just by typing in “street view funny”. Images of people urinating on the side of buildings, making out in dark corners, walking away from strip clubs, and climbing up walls on private property are all available on the internet now and are linked with Street View. Granted, not all the pictures are bad – some of them are quite interesting and innocent (Like that one with the building meant to look like a dinosaur is walking out of it? That one's awesome! Or how about the one with the giant green shoe? That's some pretty weird stuff.) but even if the ratio of infringing photographs to innocent ones is very low, how low is low enough?
How Does Street View Invade Privacy?
Many countries are putting up roadblocks against Google capturing footage of street level activity, on the grounds that it violates the privacy of their citizens. While there are still those who speak out in favour of the Internet Giant photographing the streets, there is also an overwhelming body of individuals who are insistent that the ease with which photographs can be accessed and how long they are available is a major inhibitor to public privacy and safety.
The argument that Google is only showing what is visible from the street is factually true – but with one major caveat: Sure, anyone who was walking by or standing around that particular area of the street could have seen it – but how many people were on that street at that time? I'm willing to bet a lot of money that it was not in the billions range. But that's how many people can see that image now that it's on the internet in that little nook of the web labeled “Street View”. Literally anyone who can read can now access a database of terabytes of imagery for any given location at no cost and no inconvenience (most of the time). Ok...but so what?
So if you were somehow caught on camera in your front yard, anyone can see that and figure out where you live. Anyone can figure out how to get to your house, what kind of car you drive, possibly what you look like, if you have animals etc... Wait – and all of that is available free and conveniently to anyone?
Hang on, if someone really wanted to track you down, they could have done it before Google Street View – there is no denying that, but the point is that now it is easier. Before, people had to rely on memories and being in the right place at the right time. It took a lot more effort. Someone had to really have a reason to go through all that trouble to figure out who you were, where you spent all your time, and minute details of your life. Only someone with considerable motivation would what to jump through all those hoops in order to track you down. Nowadays anyone can become a stalker if they have a computer, an internet connection and could pass the second grade.
But wait! This technology existed before why is it such a problem now? Again the question is not about what's going on but how accessible it is. Previously, these services were only available in a limited way. Now, with Street View in the forefront of the public eye, people are a lot more likely to complain. And why shouldn't they? Could anyone argue that some of the photographs taken by the Google camera don't infringe privacy? There are many sites that troll Street View with the goal of finding and saving compromising or embarrassing photographs.
The person in this particular image is leaving a strip club – He'd probably be pretty embarrassed if everyone in his social circle suddenly knew about his sexual habits. Would you want a picture like this of you posted on the web? I wouldn't.
Beyond crime, people are mostly concerned with basic privacy. In all seriousness, even though the capability is there, most people are still not malicious enough to track someone on Google Street View without a reason. But the image we put forward as a member of society is important to us, and we like to control that image. The fact that many are so quick to judge or take pleasure in other people's difficulties is evident by the fact that People Magazine even exists. Everyone liked it when it was celebrities being photographed in compromising poses, but not when it's them who's being put on the world stage purchasing sensitive products or relieving themselves in not-so-discreet locations.
How is Google Addressing Privacy Concerns?
One of the first efforts Google Street View attempted was to blur out faces – which is a great step forward, but some would argue not enough. The blurring is done by software which calculates where a face is and blurs the colours with the colours of the surrounding area to obscure the details of the face. This method is great for obscuring identities of people from anyone that doesn't know them. But having seen blurred photographs of people I know, I can tell you that if you know someone you recognize them regardless. Some people might argue that if I was on the street and I saw them I would recognize them and that everyone else would escape my attention anyways, and they're right, but again, the issue is not what is available but how easily. Anyone who might recognize your photograph (blurred or not) can search through Street View and identify you. That scares a lot people.
Recently Google took privacy a step further. According a video Google released, people and property can be completely removed. Not blurred, removed. Anyone who feels that their privacy is compromised by Google Street View can send in a message alerting the Internet Giant of their concerns and (according to many commenters on Youtube videos) “99% of the time your pic will be taken down”. While that is a great statistic, I wonder what the grounds are for refusing the last 1%... Regardless, Google has made a strong effort to remain faithful to its user base and respect user privacy.
Final Note
Personally, I don't have a problem with Google Street View, having personally used it on many occasions to figure out how to get places. It is certainly an invaluable tool for many people, and I feel that Google has made every effort to be accommodating. While people have raised many points regarding infringement of Privacy that are valid, I think it's also important to look at the big picture.
It is true that images are on Google Street View for everyone to see whether they were there or not and at any time they want. But there are actually fewer robberies and homicides in the States now than before this product became available – so is there any real proof that people are using this product for anything other than what it was meant for? It might be too soon to tell, but it's also possible that people aren't nearly as bad as so many think.
As one last point of mention even though I support the Street View project I have to wonder: if Google was receiving a bad reputation for privacy, how did they expect people to react when they came up with Google Tricycle? Now people are going to filmed up close and personal? Someone is actually going to Trike along sidewalks and through alleyways and trek into areas previously inaccessible to Google Street View. I have to hand it to them – they certainly are determined, but if so many people didn't want Street View, I'm pretty sure even less want Sidewalk view...
I realize that I've left out some of the arguments for and against this product like how Google captured WiFi data from people's homes, infringing their privacy in that way, or how some of the images can be used as proof of crimes. Unfortunately, delving into every issue surrounding Google Street View was beyond the scope of this blog. If you're still interested in these topics, however, there are some links posted below that you can follow to get more information.
Read Articles About Google Street View Privacy Concerns
- Countries Criticize Google over Privacy
- Google Faces Street View Critics
- Google Trying to Smear Stree View Critic
Read Articles About How Google Street View Promotes Safety
- Google Street View Helps Solve Crime
- Google Street View Takes a Byte Out of Crime
- Google Street View Captures Hate Crime
- (Not an Article) Top 20 Crimes Caught on Street View
Watch Youtube Videos Relating to Google Street View
- (funny) What Would It Be Like To Drive The Google Van?
- (Informative) Introduction To Google Street View
- (informative) Street View in Google Earth
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