Swiss privacy watchdog suing Google

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND: Switzerland's federal data protection commissioner Hanspeter Thuer announced on Friday that he plans to approach a federal court to force search major Google to make changes to its Street View application.

The application allows people to view street-level pictures over the Internet and which has already been criticized in several European countries for allowing individuals to be identified without their knowledge or consent, said an AP report.

Talking about the application, Thuer said, "Numerous faces and vehicle number plates are not made sufficiently unrecognizable from the point of view of data protection, especially where the persons concerned are shown in sensitive locations, e.g. outside hospitals, prisons or schools,"

The commissioner wants Google to ensure that all faces and car plates are blurred, remove pictures of enclosed areas, and declare at least one week in advance which town and cities it plans to photograph and post online. He has asked the tribunal to require Google to remove all pictures taken in Switzerland and to cease taking any more pictures in the country until a ruling is made.

Google criticized the decision and said it would defend itself in the case. The company said in a statement that it was disappointed by the move. “Street View is legal and we will 'vigorously contest' the case, Google's global privacy counsel Peter Fleischer was quoted as saying by AP.