Streetview

Street View is a technology and service that provides interactive panoramic images of streets, interiors, and other public spaces. It is part of Google Maps and Google Earth and is widely known as Google Street View. The service first launched in 2007 in the United States and gradually expanded to many countries, offering a searchable, street-level visual representation of places around the world.

Image capture is performed by a fleet of vehicles equipped with GPS-enabled cameras that take 360-degree photographs as they drive along road networks. In addition to cars, dedicated devices such as bikes, boats, and trekking backpacks have been used to photograph avenues, waterways, and scenic routes. The collected images are processed and stitched into seamless panoramas linked to precise geographic coordinates. Automated systems blur faces and license plates to protect privacy, and images can be removed or altered upon request.

Users access Street View through Google Maps and Google Earth to navigate streets, plan routes, or explore places virtually. Historical imagery is available for many locations, showing past appearances of a given place. Street View coverage varies by country and jurisdiction, with some regions limiting or prohibiting imagery for legal or privacy reasons. In some areas, indoor Street View imagery is available for selected venues such as malls or museums.

Impact and criticism: Street View has influenced navigation, real estate, tourism, and urban planning by providing immersive geographic context. It has also raised privacy concerns and sparked debates about surveillance, data collection, and consent. Google responds with privacy-preserving measures such as automated blur and user-initiated removal, and compliance with local laws.