Last week, I noted that the Czech government had stopped Google from taking any new pictures for Street View. Karl Janicek of Associated Press now reports that the government has since explained its decision:
[Czech Office for Personal Data Protection] head Igor Nemec said the ‘Street View’ cameras are placed too high — 9 feet (2.7 meters) tall — which allow them to see “over the fence” and into people’s homes.
He said his office has received dozens of complaints from citizens. In one of them, a person claimed that a picture of his home be studied by a burglar, Nemec said.
Sean Carney of Dow Jones reports that Google has a second problem in its dealing with the Czech government:
A data [collector] seated outside the European Union is obliged to appoint a representative on the territory of the Czech Republic. Google Inc, an American entity, has failed to do this,” Igor Nemec, UOOU chairman, told reporters.