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Strange Discoveries on Google Street View: Why Many Shops Appear to Be Located in the Middle of the Ocean

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For travelers heading to an unfamiliar city and planning to visit a specific store, Google Street View offers the chance to take a virtual tour ahead of time. Launched back in 2007, this innovative service allows users to explore places without being physically present. However, as highlighted by a Reddit user, there are some peculiar entries on Google Street View that raise eyebrows.

A Home Improvement Store in the Middle of the Atlantic Ocean

If you activate Street View and navigate around the planet using Google Maps, you might stumble upon numerous markers located directly in the ocean. Clicking on these markers can lead you to beautiful sandy beaches on remote islands. Yet, in some instances in the Atlantic, you might find yourself virtually transported to a home improvement store—specifically, the bathroom fixtures section.

The small blue dots represent stores that are definitely not located in the Atlantic Ocean. (Screenshot: WebSearchNews)

A click on a nearby point might lead you to the lawnmower section of the same store. But it doesn’t stop there. Another bizarre location situated between Europe and North America in the Atlantic Ocean leads to a booth within a Japanese beauty salon. Meanwhile, a close-up Street View observation reveals a restaurant specializing in Polish delicacies located in Cologne.

What Causes These Incorrect Listings on Google Street View?

The strange entries identified by the Reddit user primarily stem from a Google account named “Visual Art Brasil.” According to reports from Futurism, this is a digital marketing agency that advises clients on enhancing their visibility on Google Maps. It remains unclear whether these misleading data points were entered intentionally or by mistake.

This bathroom section is supposedly located between Los Angeles and Hawaii—in the middle of the Pacific. (Screenshot: WebSearchNews)

Supporters of the theory that the data was input intentionally note that the markers from the agency appear to be evenly spaced, forming a large rectangle in the Atlantic. Conversely, proponents of the accidental input theory point out the existence of many other erroneous points across different regions, including what appears to be a cluttered office and bedroom belonging to a private individual in the Baltic Sea.

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How Users Contribute to Street View Content

To add a 360-degree image to Street View, any user can utilize Google’s studio tool. Usually, GPS data is automatically generated from the uploaded image or video. If GPS data is absent, users can upload a separate GPX file containing GPS information. It appears that inaccurate or fraudulent data entries have occurred, resulting in stores appearing in the Atlantic and butcher shops located in the Black Sea. It is plausible that Google may enhance its verification processes for affected accounts in the future, demanding accurate data.

Curious Observations from Google Street View

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