I recently learned that you can blur the public facing side of your home on Google Maps and remove the listing from other websites like Zillow. I’m not sure if there are any threat models that would significantly benefit from this, but I wanted to ask if you all think this is worthwhile.
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You can do it but from what I’ve read, it can never be undone.
Some people worry it makes their house stand out more; take from that what you will. Personally, I think a wall or hedge is a better solution if you actually want to address the core issue, rather than blurring images on just one service.
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Interesting topic. Maybe it could be useful if on the facing side of your home (shown on Google Maps) there are visible entrances like doors, windows which could be potentially critical from the point of physical security. Still, if you live in a high-risk area, where thefts often occur, I think this wouldn’t help.
As mentioned earlier by @phnx personally, I would be worried that my house would stand out more. Some people would wonder what is there in this blurred spot.
This could also backfire - imagine a smart thief scouting out a wealthy area.
People making the effort to block their house on Gmaps might have something to hide etc.
There is also the issue of selling your house. People may be put off if they see it is blurred on Google Maps. I read one person had trouble selling his house. What happened was the Google car drove past his house when it was being raided by police (I don’t believe the person lived there when that happened). So something happening at the house when the Google car drives past or it being blurred could definitely make it harder to sell the house.
I guess it also depends. If many other houses in your area are also blurred it is far less of an issue.
I don’t really see this being an issue. Any decent realtor will take their own pictures anyways and you can always blame the previous owner for blurring it.
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