Google May Not Show 3D Aerial Images Without Asking

Oct 27

1 min read

In the case of Google 3D aerial images, the Regional Court (Landgericht, LG) Frankfurt am Main emphasises the personality rights (§§ 1004 para. 1 by analogy, 823 para. 1 BGB in conjunction with Art. 2 para. 1, Art. 1 para. 1 GG) of the residents of the properties concerned. It has decided (judgment of 24.09.2026, case no. 2-03 O 388/25, https://www.rv.hessenrecht.hessen.de/bshe/document/LARE260001263): Google may not show 3D aerial images of an inhabited property worldwide on Google Earth and Google Maps without being asked.

The case: A father from Frankfurt sued over the depiction of his house. The images also showed the rear garden. Not visible from the street. It was precisely this area that had been deliberately screened off.

The Regional Court (LG) Frankfurt am Main argues:

The personality right covers the entire property.
Aggravating: the images are taken secretly, from a great height, without prior notice.
Also relevant is the possible linking of image and address data with other sources.
Google's arguments (travel planning, school teaching) were not persuasive.

A claim for deletion was dismissed. It remains with the injunction (Unterlassung).

The judgment is not final (rechtskräftig). Google has announced an appeal.