Caught in the Net: Google Earth

The government of South Korea doesn’t care for Google Earth, the free technology featuring satellite images of the entire globe. Seoul is chatting with U.S. officials after discovering that images of the Blue House, the country’s presidential residence, can be viewed with the software. South Korea is still at war with North Korea, and Seoul ...

The government of South Korea doesn't care for Google Earth, the free technology featuring satellite images of the entire globe. Seoul is chatting with U.S. officials after discovering that images of the Blue House, the country's presidential residence, can be viewed with the software. South Korea is still at war with North Korea, and Seoul fears its neighbor could use the images for ill. "As [Google's] satellite photos are beyond our control, we are in discussion with U.S. authorities," says a South Korean spokesman. But Seoul should take heart: Some of North Korea's most sensitive facilities -- including the Yongbyon nuclear reactor -- are visible, too.

The government of South Korea doesn’t care for Google Earth, the free technology featuring satellite images of the entire globe. Seoul is chatting with U.S. officials after discovering that images of the Blue House, the country’s presidential residence, can be viewed with the software. South Korea is still at war with North Korea, and Seoul fears its neighbor could use the images for ill. "As [Google’s] satellite photos are beyond our control, we are in discussion with U.S. authorities," says a South Korean spokesman. But Seoul should take heart: Some of North Korea’s most sensitive facilities — including the Yongbyon nuclear reactor — are visible, too.

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