Toyota cars collecting and potentially sharing location data and personal information, Choice says

A Choice investigation found one customer claims he only learned about Toyota’s Connected Services feature when he began receiving emails asking him to register for it. Photograph: Toyota Australia/PR IMAGE

Smart technologies built into new Toyota cars are collecting personal data and potentially sharing it with insurance companies and other groups, consumer advocate group Choice has found.

Toyota has insisted it takes customer privacy “extremely seriously”, but has acknowledged the data communication module (DCM) – known as the “Connected Services” feature – can only be disabled but not removed from its cars, or else drivers could void their warranty and render Bluetooth and speakers non-functional.