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Masses opting out of Google Street View
Published: 19 Sep 10 17:47 CET | Print version
Online: http://www.thelocal.de/sci-tech/20100919-29927.html
Google is facing fierce opposition to its Street View service in Germany with hundreds of thousands opting out, Der Spiegel news weekly reported in its latest issue.
- Google boss tries to allay German privacy fears - Science & Technology (9 Sep 10)
- De Maizière suggests 'digital eraser' for online privacy - Science & Technology (7 Sep 10)
- Google extends opt-out deadline for Street View - Science & Technology (19 Aug 10)
Der Spiegel cited sources close to Google, which in August said it expected tens of thousands of tenants and owners to respond to its offer, unique to Germany, to pixel out buildings before images are published.
The Consumer Affairs Ministry had expected applications for more than 200,000 addresses.
Google presented plans last month to roll out images from 20 German cities on Street View later this year. The service is already available for more than 20 countries worldwide.
But the announcement triggered an outpouring of security and privacy concerns in a country particularly sensitive to such issues due its experience with the Nazi and communist regimes.
Johannes Caspar, the top official for data protection in the northern city of Hamburg, where Google's German unit is based, said he had the impression that the company was respecting citizens' wishes.
But he told Der Spiegel he wondered whether "Google can process such a storm of applications correctly."
The German government is weighing new laws on online data protection in the wake of the debate over Street View and will hold a high-level meeting on Monday in Berlin chaired by Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere.
AFP/mry
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Your comments about this article:
There is no privacy issue with Google Street View. It shows what anyone driving or walking down your street could see -- and photograph, if t hey wished!
Also, the addresses aren't very accurate. Typing in my street adress will land you six houses away. Once you do find my house, the only thing personal you'll learn is whom I supported for U.S. President in 2008. And, obviously, if I had wanted that to be a secret, I wouldn't have put the candidate's signs in my yard.
but minor: by my calculation 200,000 is approx 0.244 percent of the Germany population !!
Even I can make fun of silly people by placing their secret house on my own website and I'm not a teenager with spare time on may hands.
It's so funny that the opt-out of option is "unique to Germany". The laughter will be accurately targeted. Haaa, haaa, haa, ha, ha...!!!
Business? This just about sums up the stupidity of those morons who oppose Street View, why on earth would they not want their business advertised for free on the internet? Complete idiots!
Well I'm surprised that so many have objected... actually no I'm not, anti-anything that isn't German campaigns, enforced by TheLocal on a daily basis have created a culture of fear of Street View.
I geuss I'm going to be busy patrolling the neighbouring streets, taking photogrpahs of places that people have ojbected to and then posting them on Google earth in much higher quality as a panoramic photo.
Haaa, haaa, haa, ha, ha...!!!
IIRC there is a permanent opt-out: the deadline is for pre-launch opt-out (i.e. your house will *never* have appeared on Streetview). If you opt-out after the deadline then your house will have been on Streetview until that opt-out time.
Perhaps it could automatically stop these paranoid lost souls from accessing anything run by the evil Google empire, in fact any action would be welcome that would free up bandwith occupied by these slumbering sloths of technology advancement.
Typical tactic to raise fears.....masses, storm...all sensational, inaccurate and self-serving words.
Hey dude! Immma let you finish... BUT Google is one the most evil companies of all time...
The logic is simple Google=American=CIA/FBI=Spy=EVIL
"Germany is the largest country in Europe where Google¦#39;s controversial Street View has not gone live. This is because of privacy complaints made about the service around the world." ...
Seems like paranoia does not only run in Germany but also around the world.
Perhaps that - ... "This has all come about after Google admitted ¦quot;erroneously¦quot; collecting data from unsecured wi-fi networks in over 30 countries using it¦#39;s Street View vans. Several countries including France, Germany and Australia are still investigating the affair and in the US, Google is facing a class action lawsuit backed by 38 states." - is the reason for the paranoia.
And no, using an unsecured wi-fi network does not give the right to others (it does not matter whether they are American or German or any other nationality) to collect data.
An enormous amount of power this one paranoid person posesses.
I for one would be rather pissed off if my apartment is not inlcuded because of some one else deciding for me in my building.
I was a business at the base of that building blocked out, I would sue the person who requested it blocked for potential loss of business.
There are people who - probably due to history and maybe some education that reflects this history - simply don't want this. And most of you talk about paranoia?
Stasi has been mentioned, SS not yet but should be. What on earth is so bad about the fact that people have the OPTION?
You CAN have your house or business be visible on Street View, or you can opt out - nothing wrong with that, in my opinion.
And yes, maybe they did suffer under the DDR, but is allowing them to ride along with their paranoia the right solution to their problems?
So for those of you laughing the actual jokes on you when they say free country but were you free to opt out if you wanted?
Oh yeah my cat has been immortalised on street view...But the actual view is now changed...Hedge gone new brick wall built etc so it dosn't always reflect the current view. I just wish I'd cut my grass before the Google car came around :)
I love bringing up Google Street View....it's the next best thing to being back there.
It's unfortunately that the Germans are so frightened of having Google Street View. If I were them, I'd be more concerned about their pretty much open immigration issues....Enjoying the views of Germany from ones computers is a whole lot different than allowing people in to build mosques and plot mayhem and tyranny against other humans.