Day by day, we become increasingly more reliant on technology to help us get where we need to be. With the birth of electric vehicles, there’s a promise that our reliance on automobiles can finally become environmentally friendly, meaning we’re that much closer to navigating our world without stress.
Or are we?
Security checks from Mozilla's *Privacy Not Included project documents how major auto brands like BMW (BMWYY) -), Ford (F) -), Toyota (TOYOF) -), Tesla (TSLA) -), and Subaru (FUJHF) -) are collecting all kinds of data from drivers of newer-model vehicles. Those stats include a driver’s race, weight, health information, driving destinations, facial expressions, and even sexual activity.
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We tend to think of our cars “as a private space — somewhere to call your doctor, have a personal conversation with your kid on the way to school, cry your eyes out over a break-up, or drive places you might not want the world to know about,” the project’s program director Jen Caltrider said in a statement.
“But that perception no longer matches reality. All new cars today are privacy nightmares on wheels that collect huge amounts of personal information.”
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According to the report, microphones, cameras, and phones synced with car systems give automakers access to some very intimate (and presumably valuable) customer information.
The Mozilla check found that Nissan (NSANF) -) was the worst offender. Its privacy policy indicates that your Nissan car is giving the company access to details including health diagnoses and genetic data, though there are no details on how that information is obtained. The automaker also reserves the right to share, or sell, any data collected with law enforcement or other third parties.
Perhaps even more unsettling is Mozilla’s revelation that many of these manufacturers participate in what the project labels “privacy washing.” Essentially, this means that the automakers lead customers to believe that their data is safe with them by singing onto pledges like the Alliance for Automotive Innovation’s Consumer Privacy Protection Principles, which Mozilla says are non-binding and vaguely stated.
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