A few months ago, while trying to map out a different route to visit a family member in Kinsman, Ohio, I realized that Google Maps thought that Kinsman was somewhere in Southeast Ohio. This is completely incorrect (Kinsman is pretty far up in Northeast Ohio) and it made it really difficult to get directions. In fact, even if I used the full street address with zip code, Google kept throwing me to the wrong location.
So, I decided to try out the "Report a Problem" button and ask Google to put it in the correct place. A couple weeks later I received an email confirming that I was correct and a couple months after that, Kinsman was back in its proper place. Yes ladies and gentleman, I moved a city across the state of Ohio!
Looking at various news sources online, it would appear that this is not an uncommon problem. CNN reported back in September about how Google Maps kept "losing" Sunrise, Florida. Even worse, last month Nicaragua accidentally invaded Costa Rica due to an incorrect border line on Google Maps.
Moral of the story? Always sanity check things before blindly following Google Maps directions (especially if you're preparing to do any border patrolling). :-)
