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AP
A Google Street View car, similar to this one, reportedly snapped images of a woman's unmentionables.
A woman in Japan claims her obsessive-compulsive disorder worsened and she feared everything she did throughout the day was secretly recorded after Google Street View captured images of her underwear hanging out to dry, the U.K. Telegraph reports. So she's suing the search giant for $7,000.
"I could understand if it was just a picture of the outside of the apartment, but showing a person's underwear hanging outside is absolutely wrong," the unnamed woman told the district court of Fukuoka, Japan, where she filed her case in October. Google reportedly removed the image around the same time.
Google Street View provides 360-degree street-level images of locations in more than a dozen countries, recorded by cars equipped with 9-lens panoramic cameras. The woman filing the suit reportedly looked up her address online last spring and saw her intimate apparel hanging out for the whole wired world to see.
"I was overwhelmed with anxiety that I might be the target of a sex crime," she said. "It caused me to lose my job and I had to change my residence."
It's unclear whether the plaintiff knew her underthings were viewable from the street (thus captured by the Street View car) before she Googled her address. Stories of odd Street View lookups are becoming increasingly common as Street View extends its search —though most are not traumatic.
Earlier this year, 11-year old Reuben Soames looked up his family's Derbyshire house on Google Street View and saw a suspicious character checking his fly near the family's white Abbey Adventura caravan — the same white Abbey Adventura caravan stolen from the yard a little more than a year before. Police are now using this image in their investigation of the theft.
Related:
- Did a woman just give birth on Google Street View?
- Google Street View captures naked guy in trunk
- Google Street View captures 'dead girl'
Helen A.S. Popkin hangs her unmentionables out to dry on Facebook and Twitter.
Leave a Comment:
What a joke. I'm sick of all these retards who oppose street view. Suing google for taking a picture on a public road... I mean, really? I sincerely hope she loses the suit and it costs her. If I lived nearby I'd take all sorts of pictures of her undergarments and create a website dedicated to them.
So funny. It was fine and dandy that everyone that walked by her place could see her underwear but as soon as it's on the internet she freaks out. Sounds like Google is the least of this lady's worries.
I agree 100%. Its ok for everyone in the neighborhood, or anyone that drives by. But not google. Alrighty then. I have PTSD and OCD, but that doesnt make me STUPID enough to file a lawsuit because I hung my intimates out to dry. SHEESH.. OCD does NOT cause you to LOSE your common sense!!!!
You do realize she lost her job over the picture? It's not so much the picture itself, but rather the repercussions that the picture had. Obviously she didn't have a choice of rather to hang them or not, and it didn't matter if someone driving by, or living in the neighborhood noticed. What does matter is when she gets negative attention, is fired from her job, and has to move to do a different precinct in order to escape it. I'm pretty sure you would sue if that happened to you. Of course you're probably the same liberals who claim microsoft is evil, but google is cool (ignoring the fact that they collect your history on chrome, you emails (even if deleted), on gmail, you search history in the actual google engine, and much more.)
You assume they fired her after seeing the picture? How about she's saying she quit going to work because of her fears, and they fired her for nonattendance? I carried a TS in service. The government has so much info on me, that I'd bet they could tell me stuff I didn't know! Bet they even have some really juicy pictures. And- other than a little touch of prurient curiousity- I don't care! I remember my mom hanging all of our clothes, 'unmentionables included, on the line to dry, back when I was a kid. No biggie; the whole neighborhood did that, or hund things inside, if they were shy.
It might be different in Japan, but here in America, what ever is goes outside becomes public domain so I would have to say she's burnt.
She can't blame Google for that.... Take your meds and get over it, lady.
Folks:
The only relevant question: what color is she wearing, today?
Does OCD determine this, or is it simply the "day of the week" which rules?
This is a weird story. I think people should relax about Street View instead of suing for strange things. There's some funny StreetView images you can see at http://www.streetviewfun.com
Really??? This individual voluntarily hung her underwear outside so why is she suing and complaining?
Actually, Japanese electricity rates are horrendously high. A huge majority of the homes do not have dryers, thus clothes are hung outside on clothes lines.
Still the same crap you would see if you were there walking down the street.
When google starts taking pictures inside people's homes, then they may have a case. Public roadways are public property and public views, they should have no expectation of privacy.
honestly if she was that worried that some person on the internet looked up her address and saw her "unmentionables" and it would incite them to physically find her.... she hung them out in plain view. My grandmother when she did laundry would hang the undergarments to dry in the bathroom. problem solved. If she is that messed up over a single pic, then she most likely has personality/mental issues to begin with and needs to stop blaming others for her losing her job.
Actually, if I had my undies hung out for anyone to see, it would likely work as a deterrent (LOL). I can just hear it now, "OMG WTH!!!"
Personally, I'd rather the street view catch my home looking pristine and freshly mowed!! However, it's more likely they'll catch my home with long grass and weeds (sigh)!!
This girl really needs to relax. I doubt anyone would really look closely enough to realize what's hanging.
TheMasterOfAll, you do realize that you are an idiot and you made that fact obvious to everyone via ad hominem attacks? Jumping to conclusions and irrelevant ad hominem attacks (directed at nobody in particular) all in one post! Great job on packing so much ignorance into one little space!
How typical that you would turn this into some sort of political attack. What is it like to be so ignorant? I bet it's pretty blissful, actually. In that case, I envy you in that you can live your life so convinced of your own superiority while actually being a complete half-wit. It must be pretty easy to be so typical... though your anger issues are showing a bit.
Try using your brain before forming opinions and posting from now in rather than relying on your ignorant, preconceived notions.
They caught me coming out my front door, and you don't hear me grumbling. Of course, I was wearing all of my clothes... If you hang you clothes out in public view, "intimate apparel" or not, you must assume that people are going to see it.
If I hung my underwear up outside then I accept that people driving may be able to see them. If she didn't want people to see them she shouldnt have hung them up outside.
If they'd seen mine, I'd probably be getting sued by Google.
Persoanlly, I think this suit sounds frivoulus. Even if the google cars happened to get a picture of her in her underwear, it would have been unintentional. It is amazing how some people will take seemingly small mistakes and trivial issues and blow it out of porportion (my guess is that she mainly just wants the money). Why she was outside in her underwear is beyond me (especially if she did not want people to see her like that).
She wasn't even in her underwear. They were hanging up on a clothesline.
grats on the palin stupid comment award. nothing even hints to what you replied to. again grats.
Why don't you read the article before you reply. Its really easy to do.
The stupid woman hung her damn underwear out where people on the street could see it anyway. What a joke. This idiot is blaming her own mental problems on Google. This lawsuit is surprising since litigation is not as common in Japan.
I'm guessing you've never visited Japan. First, there are virtually no clothes dryers. Electricity is prohibitively expensive, so appliances are kept to a bare minimum. Second, there is really no "private" backyard space. If there is, it's a rare luxury. Most live in apartment-like homes with porches or balconies overlooking streets and alleys.
JacksonBrown.. that isnt the issue. if she was that sensitive and paranoid about anyone seeing her underwear she could dry them in her bathroom or another room. she choose to hang them out where anyone could see.. in public. doesnt matter why she hung them out.. she did. Now she is trying to cash in on it because she has personality disorders and got her self fired because she didnt get medical help. its a convenient excuse.
Jackson, I have actually visited there more than a dozen times and my spouse is Japanese so eat it.
All that is true but the fact still remains that her underwear is visible to all those on the street. So she is ok with that but once some anonymous person on the web might see it then she loses it?
And by the way Jackson, my underwear has hung out to dry in the front yard of my in-laws house in Japan many, many times. If it got photoed on Street View I wouldn't be suing.
Really? Then sue yourself for hanging your underwear where it can be seen from the street. You've been subjecting yourself to that danger for a long time by your own idiotic reasoning.
If she wins, I hope the judge also fines her $7,000 for every time she ever hung her underwear in that same spot. Not likely to happen, but wouldn't that just make everyone's day?
The odd part of the story is how she got so paranoid and had to move because she thought "they" were after her. The woman is crazy, so it makes sense that she would try to sue Google. But for only $7000? That's only enough for grocery money for anyone who lives in Japan - and it's pennies for Google. Doesn't seem to be worth the effort so I don't know what she is trying to accomplish. What she should have done was send Google a request to remove the image if it freaked her out so bad.
She hung her underwear outside for all to view, but complains that someone saw her underwear? wow ! What a racket.
...lame b**tch
she's probably really embarrassed because her knickers had a big skid mark in the back.
Or they came asking her about the parachute hanging from her balcony.
She should be fined $7,000 for filing a frivolous lawsuit.
I'm going to sue Newsvine for publishing my moniker.
All Japanese have obsessive compulsive disorder, it's a genetic trait for them.
What was that address again.....
She is sueing for a trivial amount of money because she hopes that Google will just pay her off instead of hiring a lawyer and going to court. She wants Christmas money.
I hope that Google countersues her for $21,000 to cover the cost of the lawyer and airplane tickets to Japan.
Airplane tickets? Google has offices and staff in Japan already.
As long as they stay on public roads they are fine, but Google has displayed a blatant willingness to trespass on private property in the past.
Okay then, if she didn't want her anybody to see her undies them why did she hang them out where they could be seen from the street? There are things like shower curtain rods and other places they could have been put to dry.
This woman's trolley has jumped the tracks.
ROFL This is simply all for attention, there is no other explanation! $7,000. won't buy crap in Japan, and yes she must have some kind of crazy genes, but seems more along the lines that she is craving major attention. Maybe she thinks they will make a reality show from this and she will get the proceeds lmao!
This is a lot of poppycock!
First If She Hangs Out Her UnderWear Out Side, She Wants The Whole World To See It, It's Not Google's Fault That They Want To Take Picture Of The Property And She Has Her UnderWear Outside, That's Why They Made Dryers/Washers. You Wash You Dry All Inside Your House, So I Hope That Google CounterSue Her For Much More Than She's Wanting So She Can Stop Bieng A Dumb Japanese B***H, We All Know It's Not Googles Fault, Its The Owner Of The Underwear Fault! So There Is No Disputing! And Wasting Time, Google Will Win One Way Or Another, Court Everywhere
It does not matter if electricity prices are high or if the sun does not shine in Japan like it does in other places. Is this woman serious? She lost her job and had to change homes because she thought she would be a prey for sexual predators? I mean, come on, she is not normal. Everybody wear underwear, and whoever saw the image could probably care less if there was an underwear hanging outside of her house. Come on, is she serious? People just have to find all sorts of reason to make some extra money. Lady, give me a break. So what is she going to do when she goes through a metal detector at the airport? Sue the airport because they saw more than just her underwear? Give everyone a break. You really should not make your name public lady, because you would not be rediculed because you had you underwear hanging outside, but because you attitude is just rediculous. She probably did not loose her job because her underwear appeared on the image but probably lost her job, and then sued google earth for money she would not be able to earn because she was unemployed. I can't say enough... GIVE PEOPLE A BREAK!!! YOU ARE RIDICULOUS!!
Damn!
I thought this was an upskirt thing.
What a waste of my porn time.
Stupid!
Sad. Sad her reaction to seeing that. Sad it affecting her so much that she lost her job. Sad. It's a garment. People wear them. However, if it's outside, for the world to view, Google has the right to film it.
She should have contacted them, told them of her concerns, and sought to have them make a minor adjustment in their viewing of her town. Would Google do that? I can see that overwhelming them, with folks not wanting their oversized pants showin on the line. On the other hand, they might take note of the panic it caused her, and bend a bit to help her.
However, in view she didn't try to take that step, I feel her actions on the lawsuit are going to fail, and rightly so.
wow i hope they counter for 14thousand $ 's on her lol that will teach her to sue some one when its out in the open. im a photographer and had 2 law suits on me because i got someone that didnt want to be seen i even fuzzed out there face as i always do in all of mine but i still got a law suit but thankfully the courts where on my side because i did every thing i could to not have then seen. YAY LAW SUITS i got a free 12thousand $'s on my counter sue lol.
Hahahah. this is so funny. She is crazy!!
Rediculous, Seriously people if you don't want the public to see something, don't leave it hanging out in public for everyone to see. Get over yourselfs, all this is a sceme to make money... easy money, the judge better throw this one out of the courts and order her to pay $7,000 for wasting googles time.