An American couple havefailed to win damagesagainst Google
for its "privacy invading"Street
Viewtechnology.
Aaron and Christine Boring lost their case in a Pennsylvania
court after accusing Google of "privacy violation, negligence,
unjust enrichment and trespassing", for showing their home in the
Street View feature in Google Maps.
The technology gives viewers a 360-degree street-level view
through photographs. The couple were seeking more than $25,000 in
compensation.
Google is photographing every street in the US for the service
and has also started to do the same thing in the UK and other
countries. Privacy groups have expressed concern over what is
contained in the images.
In her ruling, judge Amy Hay said the Borings could not prove
they had suffered as a result of having their home photographed,
particularly as they had not contacted Google to request that the
images be removed.
"The plaintiffs' failure to mitigate their alleged pain suggests
to the court that the intrusion and their suffering were less
severe than they contend," said Hay.
"Whilst it is easy to imagine that many whose property appears
on Google's virtual maps resent the privacy implications, it is
hard to believe that any - other than the most exquisitely
sensitive - would suffer shame or humiliation," she said.
Google said it blurred faces captured in Street View and offers
removal tools to those concerned about what is in the images.