51 Things You Aren't Allowed to See on Google Maps

[NNN0LHI]

http://www.focus.com/fyi/it-security/blurred-out-51-things-you-arent-allowed-see-google-maps/

Depending on which feature you use, Google Maps offers a satellite view or a street-level view of tons of locations around the world. You can look up landmarks like the Pyramids of Egypt or the Great Wall of China, as well as more personal places, like your ex’s house. But for all of the places that Google Maps allows you to see, there are plenty of places that are off-limits. Whether it’s due to government restrictions, personal-privacy lawsuits or mistakes, Google Maps has slapped a "Prohibited" sign on the following 51 places.



Government and Military Sites

The White House: Google Maps' images of the White House show a digitally erased version of the roof in order to obscure the air-defense and security assets that are in place.

The U.S. Capitol: The U.S. Capitol has been fuzzy ever since Google Maps launched. Current versions of Google Maps and Google Earth show these sites uncensored, though with old pictures.

Vice President's House: The Vice President's digs at Number One Observatory Circle are obscured through pixelation in Google Earth and Google Maps at the behest of the U.S. government. However, high-resolution photos and aerial surveys of the property are readily available on other Web sites.

Soesterberg Air Base, in the Netherlands: This Dutch air-force base and former F-15 base for the U.S. Air Force during the Cold War can't be seen via Google Maps.

PAVE PAWS in Cape Cod, Mass.: PAVE PAWS is the U.S. Air Force Space Command’s radar system for missile warning and space surveillance. There are two other installations besides the one in Cape Cod.

Shatt-Al-Arab Hotel in Basra, Iraq: This site was possibly censored after it was reported that terrorists who attacked the British at the hotel used aerial footage displayed by Google Earth to target their attacks.

[T Wolf]

1. What about AREA 51? nt

[Iggo]

9. Doesn't exist, so no need to forbid it. (n/t)

:P

[A HERETIC I AM]

10. No prob.

http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=37.235,-115.811111&spn=0.03,0.03&t=h&q=37.235,-115.811111

[Ian David]

2. Rush Limbaugh's House

http://TinyUrl.com/Limbaugh

[MrMickeysMom]

7. Hey, I didn't know he had a pet whale ...

Ooop... never mind... just the pool view

[Subdivisions]

3. Right off the bat, I think the blur has been removed from the Veep's house.

I'm looking at it on Google Earth and Maps right now.

[derby378]

4. Ironically, Area 51 (AFFTC Detachment 3) shows up just fine

But if you're looking for images of the Aurora project, you'll be disappointed. Area 51 does have a baseball diamond you can see using Google Earth, though.

[harun]

6. The good stuff is underground.

[conspirator]

11. Yeah. All those Alien corpses nt

[Speck Tater]

12. In that case I guess my evil plot to build a photo recon robot...

... disguised to look like a desert tortoise won't actually do any good. Back to the drawing boards to design a robot disguised as a dung beetle.

[NeedleCast]

5. White House

That's funny about the white house as you can clearly see everything on the roof (including snipers) from a large number of office buildings and hotels in the D.C. area.

[Ian David]

8. Terrorists are lazy. If they can't google it, they can't blow it up. n/t