Americans’ cars now have ‘unmatched power collect information about what you do and where you go’ – with at least 84% of 25 car brands in bombshell study sharing or selling personal data
Cars in the U.S. now have the ‘unmatched power to watch, listen and collect information about what you do and where you go,’ according to a concerning new study.
Americans’ cars now have ‘unmatched power to watch, listen and collect information about what you do and where you go’ – with at least 84% of 25 car brands in bombshell study sharing or selling personal data
- The Mozilla Foundation works for better online privacy and internet safety
- It found half of cars studied could share your information’ with the government
- Researches say cars can collect information about your genetics or even sex life
Americans’ cars now have the ‘unmatched power to watch, listen and collect information about what you do and where you go,’ according to a concerning new study.
According to the Mozilla Foundation, at least 84 percent of 25 car brands studied have the power to share or sell the personal data of drivers to to data brokers, law enforcement, and others.
‘The gist is: they can collect super intimate information about you — from your medical information, your genetic information, to your ‘sex life’ (seriously), to how fast you drive, where you drive, and what songs you play in your car,’ the study said.
The study gave all 25 of the studied cars ‘Privacy Not Included’ warnings, finding the car brands were collecting ‘too much personal data’ from drivers.’
The study also looked at other digital products such as smart home devices, mental health apps and exercise products. Researchers claimed vehicles ‘have the most problems when it comes to protecting a [user’s] privacy.’
The study gave all 25 of the studied cars ‘Privacy Not Included’ warnings, finding the car brands were collecting ‘too much personal data’ from drivers’
The study by the Mozilla Foundation found that Tesla , Nissan, Hyundai, Cadillac, and GMC are the top five worst companies when it came to driver privacy
The Mozilla foundation, which is behind the Firefox browser and works for better online privacy and internet safety, said cars are the worst product they have ever reviewed for privacy concerns, adding vehicles are a ‘privacy nightmare.’
It found that Tesla, Nissan, Hyundai, Cadillac, and GMC were the top five worst companies when it came to driver privacy.
It also found that 92 percent of the cars, which they called ‘data-gobbling machines,’ say they can share your information with the government upon an ‘informal request.’
Moreover, all but two, Renault and Dacia, gave ‘drivers little to no control over their personal data,’ including the choice to delete it.
The study notes that Nissan’s privacy policy says the company can share sensitive personal information, ‘including driver’s license number, national or state identification number, citizenship status, immigration status, race, national origin, religious or philosophical beliefs, sexual orientation, sexual activity, precise geolocation, health diagnosis data, and genetic information.’
None of the car brands studied met Mozilla’s minimum security standards.
The researchers wrote: ‘It’s so strange to us that dating apps and sex toys publish more detailed security information than cars.
‘Even though the car brands we researched each had several long-winded privacy policies (Toyota wins with 12), we couldn’t find confirmation that of the brands meet our Minimum Security Standards.’
The research comes as driving technology continues to advance, leading to questions about what the advances will mean for user privacy.
Earlier tis year Tesla staffers were exposed after sharing videos of customers recorded with the cars’ integrated dashcams.
Clips, which were recorded between 2019 and 2022, included road rage incidents, graphic crashes, and even a naked man approaching the car.
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Americans’ cars now have ‘unmatched power to watch, listen and collect information about what you do and where you go’ – with at least 84% of 25 car brands in bombshell study sharing or selling personal data
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Apr 6, 2023Apr 6, 2023. As some cars continue to rely on sensors, Tesla has been insistent that AI and its Tesla camera systems are the real future. The reliance on cameras does have a few upsides, like…
YOUR CAR IS A PRIVACY NIGHTMARE ON WHEELS
There was a time when a car was a machine, one which only came to life when its key was turned, and functioned simply as a way to get its occupants from point A to B. For most consumers that remains the case, but unfortunately in the last decade its function has changed from the point of view of a car manufacturer. Motor vehicles have become a software product as much as a hardware one, and your car now comes with all the privacy hazards you’d expect from a mobile phone or a computer. The Mozilla Foundation have taken a look at this problem, and their disturbing finding was that every one of the 25 major automotive brands they tested had significant failings.
Their quote that the cars can collect “deeply personal data such as sexual activity, immigration status, race, facial expressions, weight, health and genetic information, and where you drive.” had us wondering just exactly what kind of sensors they incorporate in today’s vehicles. But beyond mild amusement at some of the possibilities, it’s clear that a car manufacturer can glean a significant amount of information and has begun doing so largely without the awareness of the consumer.
We’ve railed about unnecessary over-computerisation of cars in the past, but from an obsolescence and reliability perspective rather than a privacy one, so it’s clear that the two issues are interconnected. There needs to be some level of public awareness that cars can do this to their owners, and while such things as this Mozilla investigation are great, the message needs to appear in more consumer-focused media.
As well as the summary, Mozilla also provide a detailed report broken down by carmaker.
Header: Michael Sheehan, CC BY 2.0.
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