Argentine court orders Google to pay $12,500 for capturing naked man on street view

An Argentine appeals court has ruled in favour of a local policeman who sued Google for invading his privacy by capturing an image of him naked in his own backyard.

The man was photographed from behind by a Google Street View camera in a small town in Argentina in 2017, while he was behind a two-meter (6.6-foot) wall, Caliber.Az reports via French media.

The image not only showed his fully naked body but also revealed his house number and street name. The photo was broadcast on Argentine television and widely circulated on social media, leading the man to claim that his dignity had been severely harmed, causing ridicule at work and among neighbours.

Initially, a lower court dismissed his claim, arguing that he was responsible for “walking around in inappropriate conditions in the garden of his home.” Google also maintained that the perimeter wall was not high enough to guarantee privacy.

However, the appeals judges overturned this decision, stating that the man’s privacy and dignity had been “flagrantly violated.” The court emphasised that the image was taken within the private confines of the man’s home, behind a fence taller than an average person, and therefore constituted an “arbitrary intrusion” into his private life.

The judges awarded the man compensation equivalent to approximately $12,500, payable by Google. They noted that Google's own policy of blurring faces and license plates in Street View images demonstrated its awareness of privacy responsibilities, but that this protection failed in this case where the entire naked body was visible.

“No one wants to appear exposed to the world as the day they were born,” the ruling stated.

The court also cleared co-defendants telecom company Cablevision SA and news site El Censor of any liability for the further spreading of the image, noting their role was limited to highlighting Google's error.

By Vugar Khalilov