Google Ordered to Pay Damages for Privacy Invasion

An Argentine appellate judge has directed Google to pay approximately $12,500 to a police officer after a naked image of him was captured and broadcast worldwide via Street View in 2017. This image, taken in the officer’s garden, raised significant privacy concerns.

The panel of three judges determined that the photograph, taken over a 6½-foot wall in Bragado, Buenos Aires, represented a “blatant invasion of privacy,” causing humiliation for the officer both at work and among neighbors. This ruling overturned an earlier court decision, which had criticized the officer for being outside in “inappropriate conditions,” as reported by CBS News.

“This photograph depicts someone within the confines of their own home, not in a public area. The invasion of privacy is unmistakable,” commented the judge in the ruling.

The police officer’s address and street name were visible in the image, which quickly spread across Argentine television and social media platforms shortly after its appearance on Google Maps.

Initially, the judge dismissed the case, suggesting the officer had intentionally sought embarrassment by being outdoors naked. However, the appellate panel rejected this reasoning, insisting that private property should remain private.

While Google argued that the wall’s height failed to ensure privacy, the court highlighted that the company has protocols to protect individuals captured in its images, such as automatically blurring faces and license plates, and allowing requests for further blurring.

“Google lacks justification for evading responsibility for this significant error. It undermines the dignity of the individual involved,” the ruling stated. “No one wishes to be exposed to the world naked.”

In a separate case, Cablevision SA and the news outlet El Censor broadcast the image but faced no liabilities, as the judges felt their actions highlighted Google’s missteps.

The damages, to be paid in Argentine Pesos at the exchange rate on the payment date, follow other privacy-related issues encountered by Google in its mapping services. The company previously settled a US lawsuit in 2019 for $13 million regarding the unauthorized collection of private data via Street View.