A little win for privacy rights over Google...

An Argentine appeals court has ordered Google to pay almost £10K to a local policeman who was photographed naked in his back garden by a Google Street View vehicle.

The event occurred back in 2017 in the town of Bragado, near Buenos Aires. The victim believed he was hidden from public view behind a 6 and a half foot wall, but the Google street map car still managed to get a picture of his buttocks, which exposed him to ridicule from friends, family, and work colleages.

Though a lower court initially dismissed the case, suggesting the plaintiff had no one but himself to blame for being in an "inappropriate condition" outdoors, the appeals court disagreed.

Judges ruled the image a "blatant invasion of privacy," pointing out that it was taken within the walls of his home, not in a public space, and that Google had a responsibility to protect personal dignity beyond merely blurring faces and license plates

This now means that Google needs to offer image blurring not only for number plates and households but also for people who get caught in their commercial surveillance net.

Legal Precedent & Broader Implications

This case highlights how personal dignity remains a legally protected concept, even in this era of digital mapping and ubiquitous cameras. As noted in reports, the language of the court was dramatic: "No one wants to be viewed naked by the world on the day they were born."

Google's defence rested on the opninion that the fence was too low to ensure privacy, but the court made it clear that such technical defences do not negate someone's right to privacy in the home.

The other defendants —a media outlet and local telecoms provider which posted the image —were cleared of responsibility for the posting, with the court placing the blame firmly on Google's shoulders

Final Thoughts...

This incident also illustrates how one instant captured inadvertently by technology can set off online and offline fallout — in this case viral shame and workplace humiliation. In our increasingly interconnected world, even errors by tech giants have real-world human costs to be paid. And the legal system is beginning to make them pay.