Greece grounds Google's Street View fleet

Google's Orwellian Street View snoopmobiles have been banned from prowling Greece's highways and byways, pending the search monolith coughing "additional information" as to just what it's up to. The country's Data Protection Authority issued the edict yesterday, according to AFP, simultaneously suspending a similar all-seeing …

[Ash]

Privacy Inconsequential

'This didn't go down too well with campaigners. London-based Privacy International called for a complete overhaul of the ICO, and thundered: "The gloves are now off. After ten years of failed complaints and undermining by that office of the core data protection principles, we have decided that there is no further point in trying to educate the officials there."'

I don't know about you, but to me that sounds like "We give up." thinly glazed with impotent frustration.

[Luis Ogando]

Who Cares...?

...Really?? Who does? Every day millions of people read FREE local newspapers with PICTURES of their local area. The minute their street is on the local news they cheer as if they've become international media superstars. But the minute a good bandwagon trots up they're all on like flies round a dog-turd!

Why don't these self-obsessed, under-stimulated, over-reactive, attention-seeking excuses for society turn their efforts to something slightly more important? There's all manner of crises going on in the World at the moment; why not try and fight famine, war or homelessness? No-one really gives a shit about the road you live on anyway!

@Google - You can photograph my house as much as you like. No-one will bother to look FFS!

[Bad Beaver]

Thumbs up

Nice move, Greece. Now if the rest would smarten up too, pretty please?

[CItizen Kaned]

streetview....

a guy here lives in scunthorpe, they were recently on streetview. a week later and 4 or 5 burglaries have been committed in that street. no burlaries there for over 16 years before.

he tells me that you can see down the side of his house (no gate) and that you can see he has patio doors at the back. so, it is almost a burglary tool!

[Chris Simmons]

Bloody...

...stupid NIMBY's.

I'm off to Broughton with my camera, my laptop and lots of space on my website to publish my pictures.

[adam]

@CItizen Kaned

"he tells me that you can see down the side of his house (no gate) "

So, tell him to buy a gate ?

Honestly, whats the issue ? surely a burlgar to be could just walk down the street and see the same information/images - ok i admit that Google make this a little more sat in sofa with laptop easy but who cares a toss ?

I think that Streetview is brilliant.

I think Google is brilliant.

They offer a great search engine and great email to me - all for free.

If you dont like the adverts, dont look at them or look elsewhere !!

Paris, cos she'd make an interesting view

[Tim]

Fines for Google?

Interesting that it should be in Greece this is happening. When their Vodafone network was hacked about 4 years ago, to intercept about 100 senior politicians phones (Google for Kostas Tsalikidis for info), their privacy regulator fined Vodafone £75m for allowing this, and their telecoms regulator fined them too. On this basis, their privacy regulator certainly has got teeth.

Tim#3

[David Neil]

@ CItizen (sic) Kaned

So the fact you can see that this bloke has p'ss poor security on his house from the street is due to Google?

Have you actually tried to go down a street in street view, you spend 15 minutes lookin at you own house from a variety of angles to work out if you were home that day or not, never mind try and case the joint.

[Anonymous Coward]

@Cltizen Kaned

You, sir, are an idiot.

Also, we're talking about Greece, the same country that banned all computer games because they thought they were for gambling (including Tetris, Solitaire, Quake III, you name it) and were confiscating Game Boys at the airport. I wouldn't look to them for technology policy advice.

[Cameron Colley]

I've said it before and I'll say it again.

I think Google ought to look into window-blocking and full body blocking as well as face blocking technology -- in fact vehicle-blocking would be good too. While I have to admit I love things like this it's just asking for trouble, and completely pointless, showing so many people's living rooms and cars and having pictures of them going about their daily business. There is no reason, apart from voyeurism, that google should be showing anything but blurred out pictures of people and their homes.

[Citizen Kaned]

wtf?

@ David Wiernicki - why am i an idiot? Because someone i know thinks he has been burgled (or cased out anyway) via streetview? get a life you tool. I never said that this was my point of view - simply that this is what he thinks. the fact you can see into his house via streetview is a bit pervasive imo.

and as for the guy previously saying buy a new gate - well, of course he can. but then he is going to be down some £££ isnt he?

personally i find streetview ok, i have not found a use for it myself but im unsure as to why comment attracted so much attention, let alone being called an idiot for posting what someone told me.

btw - yes i know i spelt my nickname wrong before - doh!

[Anonymous Coward]

CCTV

Honestly with the pervasiveness of CCTV in the UK it's no wonder the ICO couldn't raise any objections - as soon as you step out of your lead-lined, concrete, subterranean bunker you have no expectation of privacy in this country.

Better make sure there's no internet connection in your bunker as well.

[Colin Miller]

@citizen Kaned

and this

http://www.multimap.com/maps/?countryCode=GB#map=53.57995,-0.65346|20|256&be=22057595|North&bd=useful_information&loc=GB:53.57905:-0.65434:14

doesn't make checking out the back allies easy.

[adam]

@Citizen Kaned (again)

"and as for the guy previously saying buy a new gate - well, of course he can. but then he is going to be down some £££ isnt he?"

So your mate is blaming Google on the fact he cant afford to buy a gate ? Surely google or no google every man (and woman) should protect their "castle" ?

If he did get burgled, would he still blame google if streetview didnt exist ? if some casual hoody strolled down his street and thought "oh, no gate, lets have a look"

I think the world is screwed up enough as it is. People are dying in the world, people have no food to eat nor water to drink, and people are crying over the fact google is taking a picture of their fence and curtains - how sad - we should all be ashamed.

Google - get on with it and ignore the critics i say.

[Ed Blackshaw]

@Citizen Kaned

Why ascribe to Google what can be acheived by driving down a road in a van, casing properties the old fashioned way? Since burglaries in an area often tend to happen in groups anyway, maybe Occam's Razor could be applied to this one?

[Ed Blackshaw]

@@Citizen Kaned

and this:

http://xkcd.com/552/

[Anonymous Coward]

@adam

Yes, Google, just "get on with it and ignore the critics", and the Greek police as well; if you sourced your black Corsa's from the same place the British police source theirs, you might be able to outrun them.

Twit.

[Citizen Kaned]

maybe

@ Ed. i agree, it could be a total coincidence. but it does seem odd that 1 week after streetview they get a host of break-ins.

and yes, personally he should have a gate.

@Colin Miller - it might if it were a proper aerial photo and not an angled one. around me it would be easy to see where the little paths all go.

anyway - bored now, all i did was mention something that someone told me today, but it seems that this is miscontrued as me being an idiot. adios

[Juan Inamillion]

FFS

As others have pointed out here and elsewhere Streetview offers the same (albeit more comprehensive) information that can be seen in local newapapers, libraries (I think there are some still open), film and videos and even movies.

Anyone who thinks that it makes his property vulnerable to burglary is a twunt. Protecting one's property is something that anyone with more than two brain cells does at the first opportunity and has everything to do with physical security and common sense. Unless the perps are targeting a high-profile residence or business most break-ins are opportunistic. Ask your local plod.

@Cameron Colley - what are you blathering on about man? Maybe Google should ask everyone to stay in, garage their cars and close their curtains on the day they come by. Oh wait, maybe folk should do that in case a villain should happen to come by the neighbour hood...

Maybe we should all wear a burqas. Errr....

[Anonymous Coward]

Oh my...

...the fanbois are out in force today. Is this what they do on the free day off that Google gives them?

[Anonymous Coward]

@Citizen Kaned

"...bored now, all i did was mention something that someone told me today..."

...and then said that Streeview is "almost a burglary tool". And now that I think of it, then you said that *I'M* a tool. Is everything a tool to you today, or something? Yikes!

[Citizen Kaned]

@David Wiernicki

i said almost....

it certainly COULD be used by burglars. maybe i just know much dodgier people than some of you guys? and to think that burglaries are only opportunistic is also silly. many burglars arent as stupid as the reebok wearing chavs that break in and have a shit on your floor. there are career burglars who have never been caught after thousands of break-ins.

anyway - you bore me david.

@"http://xkcd.com/552/" link - fair point. but you will also know that the reverse can be true. correlation doesnt decessarily imply causation, but correlation cannot be ruled out by circumstance. [did that make sense... lol... sorry guys im ready for home now!] if it didnt make sens im sure you know what i mean :)

[Qneiform]

@ClitizenKaned&DavidWiernicki

We are all tools of the corporate greedheads.

There is nothing much wrong with Google Streetview, except that it is something done by a company rather than a human, which makes it inherently an act of incalculable evil and horror (like Cthulhu blowing his nose).

[Chris]

We had a spate of burglaries...

... down out street in East London last year.

But we haven't had any in the last six months. Well done Google.

... or something.

[Anonymous Coward]

Fail and Streetview

Who'd have thought that the Greeks of all people would realise that Streetview is nothing but pointless voyeurism at best, and crime-enabling at worst?

[elderlybloke]

View of Patio Doors!

The view of Patio Doors ( I assume this is what in New Zealand is called a Ranch Slider.)

I have got one visible from the street also but mine has a little lever that I can use to lock it.

I bet we have more thieves per sq mile/kilometer than you !

[M Neligan]

@Qneiform

The Lord Cthulhu is displeased: he does not have a nose to blow. Check your insurance policy is valid NOW.