As burglaries and home invasions rise, homeowners are taking an innovative step to protect their properties by blurring their homes on Google Maps. This trend, which is becoming increasingly popular, allows homeowners to make their residences more anonymous, potentially deterring potential criminals.
The process to blur a property on Google Maps is relatively straightforward. Users need to find their property on Google Maps, click on "report a problem" on the upper left corner of the screen, answer a few questions, and then submit a request to Google to make the change. However, it is currently unclear how long it takes for Google to approve these changes.
Officer Ryan Railsback of the Riverside Police Department told ABC7 Chicago, "Criminals are coming up with new and innovative ways to do their job, so we need to be up on how to do ours." He added that blurring homes on Google Maps is a "very good way for people to protect their homes."
Law enforcement expert Bruce Thomas also supports this measure, stating that it's a great idea to "harden your target," making residences more anonymous so that people can't see what homeowners have or what their houses look like. He also emphasized the importance of having proper signage on properties, indicating the use of cameras or security systems, or even a guard dog at homes.