14 DAY TRIAL // Germans really don't like Google Street View or, at least, the ones that don't like it are more than eager to express their feelings. Government officials don't have a particular fondness for the service, or Google in general, for that matter, but it looks like individuals are taking the fight to the streets, so to speak. According to one report, one German wanted to send out a message to Google so he, or she, let the air out of the tires of a Street View car and also cut a wire that went up to the camera equipment.
The assailant hasn't been identified, not that there's much of a chance of that happening, and the damages haven't been specified (in German), though they are likely to be very small. The 'attack' was mostly symbolic, the protester obviously didn't set out to cause Google any real harm, just to make a point. Something he or she, again, most certainly managed to.
The cut cable is probably trivial to fix and the tires weren't cut or damaged, only the air was let out. What's more, in keeping with the German people's known politeness, the attacker even left a note under the windshield wiper of the car notifying the driver that the tires were flat, presumably not to endanger the Google employee.
Google is now shooting in parts of Germany in preparation of the launch of the Street View service in the country. Google has met plenty of resistance in Europe over privacy concerns and Germany has been one of the more vocal countries. One official was particularly upset by the period of time Google kept raw, un-blurred photos captured with the Street View cars.
The company eventually backed down and agreed to make some concessions in the country. Other Germans have found other ways of protesting against Street View. Google is also under investigation for anti-trust issues.