EU raises privacy issue for Google Street View

by Paul Meller

May 15, 2008 —

Europe's data protection supervisor, Peter Hustinx, urged Google Thursday to
respect local privacy rules as it prepares to launch its Street
View function this side of the Atlantic.

Although he hasn't been in direct contact with the Internet search giant about
Street View, Hustinx is very aware of it.

"Street View is only available in the U.S. still, but I understand that
it will work differently when it's launched in Canada, so there is a capacity
to deploy the service in different ways to suit different privacy laws,"
Hustinx said in a press conference, adding: "I'd encourage Google to work
closely with European data-protection authorities too."

"Taking pictures on a street isn't in itself a problem but taking pictures
anywhere can be. We have sent a very strong message to Google and other Internet
search companies in our report on search engines about complying with European
privacy laws," he said.

"The same applies here. Respecting data-protection laws is central to
Google's business. Success or failure for them in Europe will depend on them
respecting the laws. They are smart, I'm confident they won't ignore the laws,"
Hustinx added.

Last month, cars daubed with the Google logo, carrying what looked like sophisticated
laser scanning photographic equipment on their roofs were spotted
on the streets of Milan and Rome in Italy.

Earlier this month, similar vehicles were seen in some French cities too.

Google's global privacy counsel, Peter Fleischer, wrote in a blog that the
company will respect local laws as it rolls out the Street View service in countries
outside the U.S.

"In other parts of the world local laws and customs are more protective
of individuals' right to privacy in public spaces, and therefore they have a
more limited concept of the right to take and publish photographs of people
in public places," he wrote

The feature has already sparked some controversy in the U.S., where Street
View is available for several cities including San Francisco. The photographic
images of the streets often include pedestrians on sidewalks or in cafes, and
car license-plate numbers are clearly visible.

In the U.S. Google will remove images of people if they ask it to do so. However,
this retroactive action isn't likely to satisfy Europe's data-protection authorities.

For this reason Google is considering installing blurring technology that would
make distinguishing features such as faces and number plates unrecognizable.
"We would only consider such action if the process of blurring could be
automated," Google's policy communications manager, Jon Steinback, said
in a phone interview last month.

One alternative would be to reduce the resolution of the whole image to protect
people's privacy, Steinback said, but this would compromise the quality of images
for everyone and is seen as a last resort to placate local privacy authorities.

Speaking on the sidelines of a press conference to unveil his annual report
on data protection in the E.U., Hustinx said that broadly, Google does take
European data protection seriously. "I am encouraged, but compliance with
our rules remains a challenge for Google and requires a commitment from the
company," he said.

IDG News Service