Loch Ness Google Maps: what is the street view picture glitch, why has it gone viral - and has it been sorted?

A Google Maps street view glitch in Loch Ness has gone viral after users found searching for the Scottish beauty spot brought up an unexpected image.

People looking up the large freshwater loch - a popular Highlands tourist location thanks to the Loch Ness monster legend - were shocked when they discovered a picture of a naked man in its place.

The bizarre occurrence quickly went viral on social media, with Twitter users sharing memes, gifs and reaction pictures.

It comes after the ninth “official” sighting of the Loch Ness monster this year was recorded, when a so-called “Nessie hunter” submitted fresh evidence in the form of a sketch.

So, what was the Loch Ness Google Maps glitch?

Here’s what you need to know.

Google Maps users were met with the unexpected when they tried to look up the famous loch via the app’s street view mode.

Instead of an image of the striking Scottish landscape, they found a selfie of a naked man standing on what appeared to be the patio of an apartment.

The glitch went viral when one Twitter user posted his unusual experience when searching “Loch Ness” in the app.

Shocked by what he found, he shared the technological mishap with his followers.

Unsurprisingly, people quickly flocked to the app to experience the glitch for themselves by searching Loch Ness and tapping the small preview image in the bottom left corner.

The original Tweet announcing the glitch read: "Public announcement. Search 'loch ness' in Google Maps, and click on the street view (I apologise in advance.)"

The post quickly went viral on Twitter, with social media users sharing their hilarious opinions about the unfortunate glitch once they had glimpsed it for themselves.

One said it was “what the internet is all about”, while another joked: “That’s no man… that’s Nessie.”

Another Twitter user quipped back: "If that's Nessie I wish we never found him."

Some people who were initially unaware of the glitch were shocked to find out why Loch Ness was trending on the social media platform.

Many had assumed it was to do with a BBC Countryfile episode featuring the location.

One user wrote: “Just seen why Loch Ness is trending. That’s not the sort of monster I was looking for.”

“I thought Loch Ness was trending because of Countryfile. How wrong was I,” another said.

It appears Google Maps has removed the image and resolved the issue by restricting the street view option for Loch Ness.

When the location is entered into Google, an error message appears which asks users to reload the page.

However, when the page is refreshed a black screen appears.

Twitter users voiced their disappointment when they discovered the photo had apparently been taken down before they could see what all the fuss was about.

Some claimed the street view option had been temporarily disabled for that specific location after Google Maps bosses discovered the viral glitch.

App users are still able to access Loch Ness and the surrounding area using the default map view.