Digital Map Manipulation

Google Maps shows different borders depending on where you view it from. In India, all of Kashmir appears Indian; in Pakistan, the same area shows as disputed; in China, Arunachal Pradesh appears Chinese.

The company adapts to each country's official claims, so there is no single true Google Map — just contradictory versions most users never notice. Digital maps can also be dangerous: GPS has led drivers into lakes and off unfinished bridges. The term death by GPS describes people who trust the screen over their own eyes, sometimes fatally in remote areas.