Google Maps is collecting dash cam footage to update road data

Summary

Google only collects and licenses dash cam footage from trusted partners, not the general public.
The footage is used to update Google Maps by extracting relevant information like speed limits using AI.
Personal information in the footage is blurred, and it only gets imagery from two UK companies.

I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again: Google Maps is the app on my phone that has saved me more times than I can remember, thanks to its up-to-date and user-reported road data. Now it seems Google is taking advantage of dash cam footage to improve its road data, but there is a catch to it all and there is no need to get the pitchforks out.

Our friends at Android Police recently spotted a new Google Maps Help post titled Collecting imagery from third-party providers (dash cam), which raised eyebrows about what exactly Google Maps is doing with dash cam footage.

To set the record straight immediately: No, Google is not randomly harvesting the general public’s dash cam footage — it’s the farthest from that. Still, it is collecting it from certain “trusted” partners. Let’s dig into what Google does with dash cam footage and how it affects Google Maps.

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Only third-party partners — not everyday folks

Google / Pocket-lint

Google only licenses and collects dash cam footage from “trusted third-party companies.” This includes two companies: Geopost, a European international parcel delivery service, and Nextbase, a UK-based dash cam company that also runs the Road Safety Club.

Google only asks these companies for imagery from public roads where Google Maps needs an update. An example the tech giant provides is requesting a short video of a specific roadway with a speed limit sign so it can update its road data accordingly.

“To identify map-related details such as new speed limit signs, Google uses a combination of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and help from our operations team,” Google says. “We extract the info and update Google Maps before deleting the imagery.”

The general public doesn’t need to worry about their dash cam footage being harvested without their consent because it isn’t happening.

No imagery it collects from these providers is published, and contributors are notified of the dash cam use. Further, both companies use technology provided by Google to blur any personal information in the footage, such as faces and license plates. According to Android Police, this data collection is likely only taking place in the UK, based on the privacy policies of both companies.

Google licenses the imagery from Geopost and Nextbase, uses AI to extract the needed information, updates Google Maps, and deletes the footage. The tech giant has never officially announced or commented to the media on this initiative, and there is no word of whether it will ever happen outside the UK. For now, it seems Google is diligently using dash cam footage to update maps in the UK. The general public doesn’t need to worry about their dash cam footage being harvested without their consent because it isn’t happening.