

While helping people remember dead family members isn’t really the intended purpose of Google Maps, a spokesperson told Recode it was “heartwarming” people were using the platform in this way. Google says the digital recreation of the physical world is powered by millions of cameras that capture multiple angles, collected by people “ driving, pedaling, sailing, and walking around and capturing imagery.” The company has also moved to allow users to submit their own images to supplement its own Street View. Google Maps uses lots and lots of cameras to create the immersive experience that Street View offers. This effect suggests that the creation of these 360-degree views of the world requires momentary surveillance. Somewhere along the way, Google Maps users are realizing this process has unintended consequences. The trend points to an enduring pattern of Google forging ahead in its endless quest to map the entire world (Street View currently includes 87 countries) and constantly update that data.

Google released Street View in 2007, and these types of viral Twitter posts have been happening since at least 2013. This is hardly the first time people have used the time travel feature in Street View to go searching for the departed on Google Maps - or to share the experience on social media. It is still her house, she is still alive, I am still visiting every few months on the train to Bodmin Parkway,- Sherri Turner June 16, 2021 I look at my mum’s old house on Google maps street view, the house where I grew up.
