Google Earth Takes Down Video of Military Base
Mar 10th, 2008 • Posted in: NewsIt’s another ethical dilemma for the firm, which faces protests from some who claim the street-level views are an invasion of privacy
SAN FRANCISCO
Google Earth, the site that provides satellite — and now street-level — views of the world, has run into another ethical dilemma: whether it compromises security by showing military installations.
Last week, the Pentagon banned Google mappers from making street-level video of U.S. military bases after video of Ft. Sam Houston in Texas showed up on the site, the Reuters news agency reports.
Air Force Gen. Gene Renuart said the government objects to the street-level views because they show “where all the guards are, it shows how the barriers go up and down, it shows how to get in and out of buildings, and I think that poses a real security risk to our military installations.”
According to the San Francisco Chronicle, Google crews were permitted access to the base but were not supposed to take 360-degree panoramic views. Google said that had been a mistake and removed the video.
But some of the images pulled were taken from public streets, raising the issue of whether the military has the legal right to ban the images.
Google’s up-close service, called Street Views, raised ethics questions from its inception in the summer of 2007. InformationWeek notes that privacy advocates protested that even though the images were taken in public places, in which passersby had no expectation of privacy, they were put on international display doing things they might prefer were kept private.
Protests were lodged by administrators of abortion clinics, mental health agencies, and shelters for abused women, all of whom said visitors would feel threatened by online photos showing them entering or leaving.
Others caught unaware by Street Views included a man exiting a strip club and someone scaling a fence.
In a related story, the Times of London reports that protestors used satellite imagery from Google Earth to gain access to the roof of the Houses of Parliament in London.
Sources: Times of London, Mar. 8 — InformationWeek, Mar. 7 — San Francisco Chronicle, Mar. 7 — Reuters, Mar. 7.
For more information, see: Related Newsline story, Feb. 25 — Related Newsline story, Jan. 28 — Related Newsline story, Jan. 28 — Related Newsline story, Jan. 14 — Related Newsline story, June 4, 2007.
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