| | By Nick Farrell in Rome @ Tuesday, March 24, 2009 8:15 AM
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| | A Google Earth service which snaps streets is being hauled before the UK's Information Commissioner (ICO).
According to the BBC, a complaint drawn up by privacy campaigners shows more than 200 breaches of UK privacy laws by Google Street view.
Privacy International wants the ICO want to look at how Google Street View works.
Privacy International (PI) director Simon Davies said Street View fell short of the assurances given to the ICO that enabled the system to launch in the first place. He wanted the service switched off until the Commission could investigate it further.
Davies claimed that Information Commissioner never grasped the gravity of how a benign piece of legislation could affect ordinary lives.
Google's chief executive Eric Schmidt said it was no skin off his nose as Google got sued every day.
At issue is what Google promised the ICO when it gave permission for the service to operate in the UK. He demanded that Google would blur faces and registration plates. However it didn't.
In one case it snapped a woman who had moved house to escape a violent partner but who was recognisable outside her new home. Two work colleagues were shown in a compromising position who suffered embarrassment and found the snap circulated at their workplace.
Google has removed some images following complaints, but the question was, why didn't it vet the pictures as it promised. X
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