Greeces Data Protection Authority, or DPA, took the decision despite receiving assurances from Google that it would blur faces and vehicle license plates when displaying the images online, and respond readily to removal requests.
Street View provides 360-degree panoramic images of urban areas that the user can manipulate, as part of Googles Internet mapping products.
The Data Protection Authority, in a decision announced Monday, said it wanted clarification from Google on how it would store and process the original images and safeguard them from privacy abuses.
It also sought clarification on how Google planned to inform the public that its vehicles with mounted cameras are being used to take photographs.
“Simply marking the car is not considered an adequate form of notification,” a statement from the authority said. “The authority has reserved judgment on the legality of the service pending the submission of additional information, and until that time will not allow (Google) to start gathering photographs.”
Google spokeswoman Elaine Filadelfo said the company would be happy to provide further clarification to the authority, and added that the service in Greece would help tourists. Vacationers in Athens frequently visit the Acropolis and the citys other ancient sites.
“Google takes privacy very seriously, and thats why we have put in place a number of features, including the blurring of faces and license plates, to ensure that Street View will respect local norms when it launches in Greece,” Filadelfo said Tuesday.
“We believe that launching Street View in Greece will offer enormous benefits to both Greek users and the people elsewhere who are interested in taking a virtual tour of some of its many tourist attractions.”
Since it was launched in 2007, Street View has expanded to more than 100 cities worldwide. But it has drawn complaints from individuals and institutions that have been photographed, including the Pentagon, which barred Google last year from photographing U.S. military bases for Street View.
In Europe, Google visitors can already take a virtual tour of landmarks like the Colosseum in Rome and the Eiffel Tour in Paris.
Greece has strict privacy laws, giving the Data Protection Authority broad powers of enforcement.
The authority has repeatedly ruled against Greeces conservative government, banning the use of street cameras to fight crime. The cameras were set up as part of elaborate security preparations for the 2004 Olympics in Athens.
The authority also ordered a Greek mapping site, http://www.kapou.gr , Monday to suspend its service until it provides further privacy clarifications and blurs faces in its online images.
The Greek site said Tuesday it had stopped posting photographs while it was upgrading its service.
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AP Technology Writer Michael Liedtke contributed to this story from San Francisco, California.
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