We get a few emails every week from people asking how they can get their image removed from Google Street View, so we thought we’d discuss it here. Thankfully, it’s a fairly simple process.
As you likely know, Google automatically blurs any faces or license plate numbers that appear in the imagery, as seen here:
However, sometimes a face will be missed or you’ll have some other reason to request that an image be removed. The steps are as follows:
- Locate the image in Street View.
- Click “Report a problem” in the bottom-right of the image window.
- Complete the form and click “Submit”.
That’s it! They’ll review your report and take appropriate action. You can use a similar technique in Google Maps to help update the map if you see any incorrect information (misspelled street names, etc).
For more, check out the privacy section on the Google Street View website.
About Mickey Mellen
Mickey has been using Google Earth since it was released in 2005, and has created a variety of geo-related sites including Google Earth Hacks. He runs a web design firm in Marietta, GA, where he lives with his wife and two kids.
That’s Walter White from Breaking Bad :))
Fred Goodwin of banking fame got half of Oswald Road in Edinburgh, Scotland removed (see*). It’s a slippery slope.
* http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/jun/20/fred-goodwin-house-removed-from-google-street-view
Somebody in Marinette, WI got a whole block of Marinette Avenue removed, I presume just because it shows his or her house. Before the images were removed, there were no people visible, as far as I recall. For what it’s worth, for every face or license plate I see blurred on street view, I see several street signs, building details and other innocuous items that apparently fooled the algorithm. In some cases real faces are visible in the same image. As far as I’m concerned, unless you catch me doing something embarrassing, I’d rather they didn’t blur my face if it ever turns up.