After nearly a week, Google have sent an email confirming that they have removed the images of my house from Streetview. It was a nice email, apologizing for any inconvenience. But, yes – having to write at all was inconvenient. I have checked, and the image has been removed from all angles along the street, with only one smallish view left, although as this is obscured by trees, I am satisfied.

I wonder about updates – will Streetview be updated ?

Will I have to make another request for the images to be removed ?

Does this stuff get archived by anyone ?

I have mentioned my concerns about privacy to several people. It seems I am in a minority in worrying that highly detailed images of my family home are available to the entire world for inspection. I have read in the newspapers that some people are really pleased that their homes and cars feature in a prominent role; even more pleased if they can identify themselves in nearby locations. I guess if you can’t get on reality tv you have another chance with Streetview. What about linking all those cctv cameras to Google Maps too, so our friends and family can watch us admiringly in realtime ?