German court limits Google's use of aerial images of private homes

Three-dimensional aerial footage of residential properties in Germany may not be published on Google Earth and Google Maps if the owner objects, a German court has ruled.

The ruling sides with a homeowner who sued the US internet giant over the use of satellite images of his residence.

The man, who owns a house in Frankfurt, had previously succeeded in having images of the front of his home blurred on Google Street View and Apple Look Around.

In the case he brought against Google Earth and Google Maps, the Frankfurt regional court sided with the plaintiff, ruling that the use of the 3D aerial footage of his property without his consent was unlawful.

"No one should have to accept that aerial photographs of their inhabited property are publicly disseminated worldwide without their consent, at least where the photographs show areas of the property that are not visible to the public," the court said in a statement published on Tuesday.

The images used by Google Earth and Google Maps also included the rear section of the man's property, which is not visible to passers-by from the street, according to the court.

It argued that the images give insight into residents' lifestyle and also for the identification of potential security vulnerabilities.

The court accused Google of obtaining the footage through "spying," arguing that owners are not notified in advance that satellites are about to take photos of their homes, meaning that it is impossible to cover up individual sections of the property before a flyover.

The court ruled that Google cannot successfully invoke freedom of information for internet users to justify its actions.

Google's aim of contributing to the democratization of knowledge and a transparent information society was legitimate, the judges said, but did not justify intruding into the private spaces of property owners.

Aerial footage of private residential homes was also not needed for infrastructure planning, urban development, holiday planning or school lessons, the court said.

Google said it plans to appeal the verdict.

"The views in Google Earth and Google Maps are used in a variety of ways - for example, in urban planning, environmental research and disaster relief - and are therefore a very useful service for millions of people," a spokesman said.

The case recalls a wave of complaints by German citizens more than a decade ago, when Google Street View cars began taking photographs of streets across the country, sparking a major debate about online privacy.

Faced with massive political and public pressure, Google eventually allowed property owners to opt out of Google Street View ahead of its launch in 2010.

This resulted in hundreds of thousands of households requesting to have their homes blurred on the mapping service.

In turn, Google stopped updating the images used in Germany and only started to update them again in 2023.