OTTAWA--A Google Inc. product that allows users to view street-level photography may violate Canadian federal privacy rules by failing to obtain consent from individuals featured in the photo images, according to Canada's federal privacy commissioner.

In a letter sent to the Mountain View, Calif.-based search engine, Privacy Commissioner of Canada Jennifer Stoddart expressed concern that street-level photography may not meet the basic requirements of Canadian privacy laws if people can be identified in the images.

Although the product has not yet been deployed in Canada, it uses technology and imagery developed by Calgary, Alberta-based Immersive Media Corp. and features images taken in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal and Quebec City. It was launched in the United States in May 2007.

The commissioner sent letters to both companies seeking further information and assurances that the privacy rights of Canadians will be safeguarded if their technology is deployed in Canada.

A federal law in Canada called the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act establishes standards for the collection, use and disclosure of personal information in the course of commercial activities, and balances an individual's right to privacy with an organization's need for personal information for legitimate business purposes.

According to the commissioner's office, images of individuals that are sufficiently clear to allow them to be identified falls into the category of personal information within the meaning of PIPEDA.

The images contained in Immersive Media's database "appear to have been collected largely without the consent and knowledge of the individuals who appear in the images," the commissioner said in her letter.

Although viewers have the ability to request that certain images be removed from the database, this is "only a partial solution" because individuals may not be aware that images related to them are on Google's Street View product, the commissioner said. By the time they become aware, their privacy rights may already have been affected, she said.

"I am concerned that if the Street View application were deployed in Canada, it might not comply with our federal privacy legislation," Ms. Stoddart said in her letter. "In particular, it does not appear to meet the basic requirements of knowledge, consent, and limited collection and use as set out in the legislation."

Spokespersons for Google and Immersive Media could not be immediately reached for comment.