A man in Argentina has won a legal case against Google after the tech giant’s Street View camera captured and published a photo of him completely naked in his backyard. The image, taken in 2017, showed the man from behind and quickly spread across social media and local news broadcasts. At the time of the photo, the man, a police officer living in a quiet town, was within the boundaries of his own property and believed he was shielded from public view by a tall perimeter wall.
Despite the wall, Google’s Street View vehicle managed to snap the image over the top of it, exposing more than just a routine street scene. The photo included his street name and house number, making the location unmistakable. The man said the exposure brought ridicule from neighbors and colleagues, leaving him embarrassed and humiliated.
Initial Ruling Sides with Google
When the case was first brought to court, the lower court dismissed the man’s complaint, claiming he bore some responsibility for being naked outdoors—even within his own garden. The judge concluded that walking around unclothed outside, regardless of fencing, made it possible for anyone, including a camera, to see him.
Google also defended itself by arguing that the wall surrounding the yard was not high enough to prevent visibility. The company suggested that their Street View imagery simply captured what was already in plain sight from a public road.
Appeals Court Sees It Differently
But an appellate court took a different stance, ruling that Google had violated the man’s right to privacy. The judges emphasized that the photo was taken from outside the man’s private residence but still managed to intrude into his personal space. They concluded that the tall fence signaled a clear intention to create a private environment, and that breaching that boundary was unjustified.
The court awarded the man compensation amounting to roughly $12,500 (in Argentine pesos), recognizing the damage done to his dignity and the personal distress he suffered as a result of the image’s spread online.
Privacy Protection Policies Under the Microscope
The ruling brought renewed attention to Google’s Street View policies. The company claims it uses automated technology to blur faces and license plates to protect privacy before publishing any images on Google Maps. It also allows individuals to request that certain locations or objects—like their homes or cars—be blurred after publication.
In this instance, however, the photo clearly showed the man’s entire body from behind, unblurred and fully exposed. The court noted that while Google is usually careful to avoid such incidents, its failure to act here was a significant oversight that warranted accountability.
Two other parties—the telecom company Cablevision SA and the news outlet El Censor—were also named in the lawsuit for sharing the image after it went public. However, the court ruled that they were not liable, stating their involvement was limited to reporting on a story that had already drawn national attention. Their actions, the judges found, were not the cause of the privacy breach.
