Google Will Let You Spy on People

Thu Mar 15, 2007 7:07:59 pm by Dustin
Filed under Dealing with People, Tools and Tricks, Fun, General

It’s true. Google has past a point of just of caring about your privacy and now allows you to watch people from the comfort of wherever you use your computer. Here are your steps:

  • Go to Google Maps (http://maps.google.com).
  • Search for your favorite spy victim.
  • Click the Link to this Page link in the upper right of the map.
  • In the address in the Address Bar find the ‘z=’.
  • Change the number which follows this and press Enter.
  • Spy away.

Ok, I have to admit that there is a catch. This techniques will only show you still shots, quite pixelated still shots, and they may be a few moments (or years) old. Either way you can zoom way in. Kinda like a Way Back Mechine but for zooming.

Happy Spying.

« Love Yourself Part Two
Give a Link to Charity »

  1. Brandon
    Fri Mar 16, 2007 9:28:23 am

    Spay away? Do I look like an animal shelter… or a veterinarian?

  2. Dustin
    Fri Mar 16, 2007 9:34:57 am

    Thanks, the typo has been fixed.

  3. Ray
    Sun Mar 18, 2007 12:32:13 pm

    I don’t get it… you’re telling people how to manually zoom, and assuming google knows an address from a name?

  4. James
    Mon Mar 19, 2007 11:03:27 am

    I guess today I get to be the jerk who rains on the parade. We used to kill time in the switch room before Google maps even existed using the same trick to get subscription-only zoom-level images off of Terraserver.

    You also can still only go to 20, which is one level above what the slider does, and it seems it only does that by blowing up the frame, so it’s effectively no higher resolution.

  5. Dustin
    Mon Mar 19, 2007 11:26:20 am

    But you get to spy on people.

  6. James
    Wed Mar 21, 2007 3:09:56 pm

    Yes, but the pictures of the area around the school, for example, are about 2 years old. I wasn’t even able to spy on myself

  7. Brandon
    Thu Mar 22, 2007 8:27:44 am

    Well, go stand outside for a couple of years and check again… they’re bound to take a picture of you eventually.

  8. Dustin
    Thu Mar 22, 2007 8:30:51 am

    You see, Brandon is beginning to understand. Plus I don’t think James is the kind of person that I would want to spy on.