The Google Street View cars have caught some crazy scenes over the last few years. They've fallen into ravines, driven on race tracks like Indianapolis, and one even witnessed a birth on the street.
But now, Reddit has turned the tables on the internet powerhouse and on Michael Westen — arguably TV's greatest current spy — whose main goal is often to avoid detection. A Redditor spotted a Street View car on an episode of spy drama Burn Notice, and then the internet community did some snoopery of their own to watch the watchers.
You know spies, a bunch of bitchy little girls.
In one of the finer pieces of internet sleuthery we've seen, Redditor 154James spotted a Google Street View car pass by in the background of a recent episode of Burn Notice. He posted a screen grab of the car on Reddit which then started some great detective work.
Another Redditor, thomasamadeusking (say that three times fast), did some Sherlock Holmes level work and found the scene from the car's point of view.
I figured out where the main studio for Burn Notice was, looked for a place with some tall, grandiose looking buildings which were also close to the water, and then looked them up. Didn't take too long. Ah the wonders of Google.
One of the other Redditors, stannyb, was actually on set at the time it happened and was caught on camera by the car. Her face and expression seem to say "hey, that's freaking Google driving by!"
Normally, exciting street view finds, like this peeing Frenchman, are seen on Google first and other media second. But this time, Google (and Googlers) missed their own scoop and were beaten by a guy with a DVR.
Google, you were once an effective spy, but it seems the viewers of a spy show may have out-sleuthed you. Consider this your burn notice.