Brazil has demanded an explanation from internet giant
Google about private wi-fi data allegedly collected while photographing for its
Street View maps.
US and European courts have already fined Google for
illegally harvesting data through the Street View programme.
Google says it has removed the data collection facility from
the vehicles.
The decision by a court in the capital, Brasilia follows a
complaint lodged by the Brazilian Institute of Computer Policy and Rights.
It based the allegation on similar cases in other countries
and demanded that Google reveal if it also collected data in Brazil.
The Street View project cars are equipped with cameras and
antennas to take 360-degree photos of streets and houses, which are later
stitched up and posted as online maps.
Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, Belo Horizonte and other major
Brazilian cities have been photographed by Google.
Earlier this year, Google agreed to pay a $7m (£4.3m) fine
for collecting people's personal data without authorisation in the US.
In a settlement with 38 US states, the internet giant agreed
to destroy emails, passwords, and web histories collected by Street View cars
between 2008 and 2010.
Germany also fined the company 145,000 euros (£125,000) for
illegally recording information.
The country's data chief called it "one of the biggest
known data protection violations in history".
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