Imagine minding your business at home, thinking you’re safe behind a wall—then waking up to find your naked body trending online thanks to a Google camera. That’s precisely what happened to a man in Argentina, and now Google has been ordered to pay him $12,500 in damages.
According to CBS News, the unnamed man, a local police officer, was captured completely nude in his yard by a Google Street View camera back in 2017. Though the image showed him from behind, the photo included his full address and house number, which quickly made the rounds on local news outlets and social media.
“Inappropriate Conditions” or Invasion of Privacy? Court Sides with Naked Man
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When the man first sued Google for emotional distress and privacy invasion, a lower court actually denied his claim, stating he had no one to blame but himself for being “in inappropriate conditions” on his own property.
Google also fired back, saying the fence wasn’t tall enough to block him from view. But on appeal, the judges weren’t having it. “This involves an image of a person that was not captured in a public space but within the confines of their home, behind a fence taller than the average-sized person,” the court ruled.
They pointed out that Google has strict policies to blur out faces and license plates on Street View—yet somehow, this man’s body was not blurred, which only fueled the public exposure and ridicule he says he endured.
Local Media Made It Worse: “The Whole Neighborhood Saw It”
The man said it wasn’t just the photo itself that caused problems, but the public reaction afterward. Once the image went viral, coworkers and neighbors began mocking him, and local TV stations even covered the story.
His info, including his exact address, was tied to the image, making it impossible to deny that it was him.