From sex life to health: Cars collect your data and sell them
KEY POINTS
- Cars can collect personal information from drivers in huge quantities
- 84% of the car brand say they can share your personal data
- 56% say they can share your information with the government
Drivers have been warned that cars present a “privacy nightmare†with vehicle manufacturers collecting extensive personal data on drivers, even including their sexual activities.
Article continues below
A study of 25 car brands found they all failed consumer privacy tests carried out by Mozilla Foundation. Its research found that 84% of car companies review, share or sell data collected from car owners.
Nissan and Kia collect data bout your sexual activity, they states in their privacy policy.
The Mozilla research suggests that six car companies can collect intimate information, including a driver’s medical information and genetic information. How fast a person drives, where they drive to and the songs they listen to in their car were also included.
Only Renault and Dacia which are owned by the same parent company say that all drivers have the right to have their personal data deleted.
Cars can collect personal information from drivers in huge quantities, from the connected services that can be used in the car, to third-party sources such as online radio service Sirius XM or Google Maps. That data can then be used to “invent more data about you through inferences about things like your intelligence, abilities and interestsâ€, Mozilla said.
It’s bad enough for the behemoth corporations that own the car brands to have all that personal information in their possession, to use for their own research, marketing, or the ultra-vague “business purposes.â€
But then, most (84%) of the car brands we researched say they can share your personal data with service providers, data brokers, and other businesses we know little or nothing about. Worse, nineteen (76%) say they can sell your personal data.
A surprising number (56%) also say they can share your information with the government or law enforcement in response to a “request.â€
Not a high bar court order, but something as easy as an “informal request.â€
"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 any of the brands meet our Minimum Security Standards."
All but two of the 25 car reviewed earned our “ding†for data control, meaning only two car brands, Renault and Dacia which are owned by the same parent company say that all drivers have the right to have their personal data deleted. ■