A Google Street View car is driven in Sundsvall, northern Sweden September 13, 2011. Street View, which enables users of Google Maps to view photos of streets as well, has been around since 2007 -- sending its cars out to take photos of city streets -- an
A Google Street View car is driven in Sundsvall, northern Sweden September 13, 2011. Street View, which enables users of Google Maps to view photos of streets as well, has been around since 2007 -- sending its cars out to take photos of city streets -- and covers about 30 countries. REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch

Google has lost to a Canadian woman a lawsuit that the latter filed over alleged breast exposure taken by the company's Street View car. But despite the win, the woman from Quebec only got to receive a $2,250 settlement, less than a third of the $7,000 she had asked for, along with interest and $159 in court fees.

In her lawsuit filed in 2011, the unidentified woman claimed Google had strongly violated her privacy when it posted the images its Street View car took. Google argued it immediately responded to her complaint the minute it received them. The company blurred all images relating to the woman, her home and car.

The woman from Montreal, based on the captured image, was seated on her front step one day five years ago. She was seen casually scrolling through her emails on her smartphone. Then a Google Street View car passed by. She said she didn't pay much attention to it.

It took until 2011 for her to remember the encounter. She then immediately launched a search of that street-view sweep on Google Maps. She said she saw her face was already blurred. But her home address and licence plate weren't, as well as her partially exposed breast. Unknown to her, the top edge of her tank top shirt had drooped too far, revealing too much skin.

In her lawsuit, she claimed Google had flagrantly abused her "right to a private life, the protection of her image and of her dignity." She maintained she was subjected to some humiliating exchanges with co-workers because she was still recognizable in the photos, even to friends and family. The court that handed down the decision against Google said just because it took pains to blur the face of the person doesn't mean they are already unrecognisable.

Google Street View is a technology featured in Google Maps and Google Earth. It provides panoramic views from positions along many streets in the world. Launched in 2007 in several cities in the United States, it has since expanded to include cities and rural areas worldwide. Streets with Street View imagery available are shown as blue lines on Google Maps. Google Street View displays panoramas of stitched images. While most photography is done by car, some can also be done by trekker, tricycle, walking, camel, and underwater apparatus.