TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Keelung was pranked this week when an anonymous internet user changed the Mandarin characters for the city’s name on Google Maps.
The prankster changed the city’s name to the way it was written historically, using the characters “jilong” (鷄籠) or “chicken coop,” rather than the modern characters for Keelung (基隆). Keelung City Government, which became aware of the issue on Oct. 22, sent a letter to Google requesting a correction, reported LTN.
There have been several reports of schools and landmarks around Taiwan having their names altered on Google Maps by pranksters in recent months. This marks the first time a municipal district or government organization was targeted.
The name Keelung is likely derived from the pronunciation of the Ketagalan Indigenous people and was first used by the Dutch to refer to the area. The character jilong came into use for the city in the late 17th century, and was amended to Keelung in 1875.
After previous incidents, Google said it implemented measures to prevent tampering with Google Maps address data. However, the newest incident has raised fears that Google’s measures are insufficient.
As of publication, Keelung City Government is still waiting for Google to fix the issue.




