A couple weeks before moving to Geneva I felt like a kid before Christmas determined to uncover what gift she got before it made its way under the tree.
Days before departure, I decided to check out my new neighbourhood with Google’s Street View application.
I walked past the grounds at the Palais des Nations and strolled through the streets in Carouge. I even made it to my new doorstep and was thrilled by its appearance until I turned around and realized I had signed a lease on a place that was deep in the heart of the red-light district. I immediately snapped out of my virtual daydream and pretended the whole online preview never happened.
A few months back – and one new apartment later – Switzerland’s Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner, Hanspeter Thür, scolded Google and its Street View application for not taking the necessary steps to protect the privacy of individuals.
For him, Google was not doing enough to blur faces or hide license plates. Others have noticed that Street View captures not only a person’s whereabouts but their misadventures as well. He demanded that “Google Inc. immediately withdraw its online service Google Street View concerning Switzerland”.
Needless to say, Google didn’t exactly feel threatened and Switzerland’s Street View held strong.
Earlier this week, vows of action were renewed as Thür announced that Switzerland will be taking Google to court.
It’s widely known that Switzerland upholds a tradition of privacy. It’s in their banks, their family lives and in the tendency for most of its cities to practically shut down by 8pm on weeknights. So is it really a surprise that the Commissioner now plans to take the multimedia empire to court over Street View?
Google has all but brushed the concerns aside saying that it plans to “vigorously contest” the case once it is brought to court. Now you know when Google says “vigorously” what they really mean is that will make Swiss bank accounts look modest with the team of lawyers they plan on hiring to keep cameras rolling on in Switzerland.
Street View even has Google CEO Eric Schmidt reassure us all on Fox News (do yourself and your mind a favour and just skip ahead to 4:55) that it’s trying not to cross the “creepy line”. Oh well in that case…
No, it’s really not all that surprising at all.
Tags: data protection, Life in Switzerland, privacy, Swiss
Social bookmarks:
Switzerland’s Red Light district eh? Sounds exciting. I remember hearing a debate on CBC regarding the privacy issues surrounding Google Street View. I highly doubt Canada will take any action though.
Well, if I you use “exciting” as a euphemism for uncomfortable then yes, exciting! No it really isn’t all that bad it’s just not my idea of home. Yes it’s definitely going to be interesting to see how (/if) this lawsuit pans out though - it will likely set a precedent for any future action!
Google is an amazing company. They are smart and innovative, but I just hope they’re not becoming the next Walmart in their takeover of the world. I mean Walmart doesn’t even close on Thanksgiving Day anymore. By the way, Happy Thanksgiving to all those Americans out there.