Google Street View, ever since it was launched in May, 2007, has been continuously attracting criticism for intruding into people's privacy. Last week, a group of Japanese journalists, lawyers and professors demanded that the US search giant close down its "Street View" feature of Google Maps in the country. According to the group, it violates people's privacy.

Yasuhiko Tajima, a professor of constitutional law at Sophia University in Tokyo and head of the Campaign against Surveillance Society, reported via a telephonic interview, "We strongly suspect that what Google has been doing, severely violates a basic right that humans have."

He added, "It is our duty to warn society that an IT giant is openly violating privacy rights, which are important rights that the citizens have, through this service."

Google is being demanded by the Campaign against Surveillance Society, to put an end to providing its Street View service of Japanese cities and delete all saved images.

Last year, Street View was launched by Google in the U. S., offering pictures of panoramic all-around street-level views on its online maps, and most U. S. citizens focused on the positive, not worrying about the possible privacy infringements. However, Google Street View was criticized by one town in Minnesota which banned it from coming anywhere near it.

In Japan, Google is facing privacy violation issues, following when the service was expanded to 12 major cities in Japan in August.

One of the major reasons why Japan is criticizing Google, is that Japan is a more secretive and privacy-loving nation than most and local communities have not taken kindly to seeing their little piece of heaven plastered all over the Web for all and sundry to view.