I was shocked to find a photo of my house with the garage door wide open when I typed in my address for the first time on Google Maps.
All of my tools, my generator, the empty box from when I got a 50-inch television, and even the plate number on my car were all plainly visible. It felt like an uninvited public exposure. Most people are unconcerned if their home is included in Google Street View, but they should be.
Strangers may now learn a lot about your home or the items in your garage (if it was open when the Street View Car passed by).
There’s even a function that allows individuals to explore any neighborhood virtually. A criminal may cruise the streets until he finds a home with its garage door open. He may choose that house as his next target if he discovers anything valuable within.
Related post: How To Generate Your Own Electricity At Home
Fortunately, there’s a very easy way to have your house blurred out.
Blur Your House on Google Maps
- Go to Google Maps.
- Type in your address.
- Click on the picture of your house.
- Click “Report a problem” in the bottom right corner of the screen.
- Drag the picture and move it into the red box until your home is inside.
- Under “Request Blurring” select “My home.”
- Fill in the email address you want to reset. Check that you’re not a bot by clicking the Verify button, then submit.
- Wait a few days, and check again to see if your house has been blurred.
You may also obscure a face or a license plate with the same form. Although Google Street View is designed to automatically blur these things out, it fails to do so in many cases.
But keep in mind that once Google has blurred something out, it’s for good. It can’t be undone. So if you attempt to sell your property later,
Maybe I’m just paranoid, but it seems like the older I get, the harder it is to protect my privacy.
You must be more cautious now than you were in the past about letting information from your life online. Make sure to Google Maps your house and ensure that there is nothing there that you don’t want others to discover.
If you’re a bit like me and are interested in protecting your privacy, you might also like these survival and preparedness ressources:
- How to avoid being the victim of a deadly home invasion (this secret takes just minutes to do but is the smartest way to stop an intruder).
- How to hot-wire a careven if you have zero mechanical knowledge.
- How to create an Escape and Evasion Kit and the 23 critical items to include in it.
