⚙️ Summary: How does your car sell your data without you realizing it?
General Motors (GM) has faced an unprecedented penalty from the Federal Trade Commission because of its practices in collecting and selling customer data to brokers affiliated with third parties. Different car companies use connected systems such as OnStar that monitor driving behavior to collect data including speed, driving hours, and even the vehicle’s geographic location. This case reveals major challenges in data privacy in the increasingly connected automotive sector, and highlights the difficulty of controlling user information linked to multiple systems and software.
Efforts are intensifying to pass legislation such as the DRIVER Act, which aims to give vehicle owners the right to control their data, despite privacy advocates’ reservations because it does not prevent excessive data collection. Other proposals also appear, such as the concept of the “freedom car,” which rejects connectivity and in-vehicle data-collection systems. At the same time, this file is drawing growing interest in industrial and engineering sectors, including systems engineering, manufacturing, and information systems.
🏗️ Background to the problem: the data cars collect
Car companies have long considered users’ driving data to be added value, especially in insurance and financial industries. General Motors was collecting various data about drivers through OnStar and features such as Smart Driver.
This data includes:
- The rate at which the car accelerates and the speeds it reaches
- Driving hours, including night driving
- Geographic location and movement history
User data was collected to analyze insurance risk through data brokers such as LexisNexis and Verisk, which work on behalf of insurance companies to build driver profiles. Many drivers were not aware that the consent obtained by the companies was part of the subscription terms for these services, which are usually complex and unclear.
🔌 The complex engineering of privacy in connected cars
Unlike smartphones, where privacy can be managed easily through clear settings, the multiple data systems in cars represent a notable engineering challenge. Data is collected through:
- Smart in-car control systems (Connected Services)
- Phone apps linked to the car for control and management
- Financial services tied to a loan or lease
Because of the diversity and overlap of these systems, it becomes difficult for the average owner to track how the data is used and to adjust settings. Experts point out that consumers have “very limited control,” due to the absence of unified policies and clear engineering systems.
This reality merges with the technical challenges in designing engineering systems that collect large amounts of data while ensuring user security and privacy, especially since the data may negatively affect insurance pricing or other undisclosed decisions.
🔧 Legislative efforts: DRIVER Act and the concept of the “freedom car”
In an attempt to address protection of data and information generated by vehicle operation, three Republican lawmakers introduced the DRIVER Act (Data Rights for Information and Vehicle Electronics in Real-time) in December of last year. The law aims to
- Affirm the vehicle owner’s right to own the data generated by it
- Enable owners to control access to their data and delete it
But the law does not prevent car companies from collecting and selling data to data brokers, which has drawn objections from privacy protection groups that believe this is not enough to prevent technically necessary data collection. They emphasize the need to reduce the amount of data collected in the first place rather than rely on later mechanisms for control or deletion.
At the same time, the concept of the “Freedom Car,” or “free car,” emerged, proposed by the U.S. Department of Transportation under Danielle and sponsored by a former Trump administration official. The idea is that citizens should have the freedom to buy a car that is not connected to the network and is not equipped with self-driving systems or wireless data transmission. This proposal reflects a desire to reduce reliance on communications and data systems in car design.
🌐 Market reality: technical challenges and opportunities
Despite the controversy and proposed legislation, the automotive industry still relies heavily on data collection:
- Data represents an additional source of income for companies through marketing facilitation and targeted insurance services
- New cars contain sensors, cameras, and smart systems to provide advanced services, but they collect data extensively
- Consumers face technical and legal difficulty in understanding how to stop data collection
- Technical and engineering competition pushes car companies toward more innovation in data collection and analysis without burdening the user
At the same time, software and smart applications linked to vehicles offer greater ease in adjusting privacy settings through smartphones. But important information about the real data-collection policy is often hidden in complex legal texts.
🔍 What next: will the engineering landscape in the automotive industry change?
Current developments place engineers of technical infrastructure and developers of smart control systems before the challenge of integrating cybersecurity and user comfort while providing the data needed to develop smart services.
Consumers now are demanding simpler cars without tracking devices, including:
- Monitoring systems that were not explicitly requested
- Cameras linked to behavioral analytics systems
- Continuous monitoring of movement and geographic location
This means there is a need for engineering solutions that balance technological innovation and the protection of personal rights, a complex challenge because of the economic interests of the vast data-linked ecosystem. At the same time, engineering inventions in vehicle manufacturing and power sources can offer alternatives that rely less on constant connectivity.
🔎 Practical steps to control car data
Every manufacturer provides dedicated privacy pages that allow:
- Reviewing and adjusting options related to data collection
- The ability to unsubscribe from some monitoring services
But:
- The complexity of legal texts and the difficulty of accessing these settings are an obstacle
- Companion apps may provide relative ease, but they do not cover all aspects of data collection
These points lead to the need for engineering improvements in user interfaces and technical transparency, as well as the development of Real-time Data Control systems that allow the consumer to make faster and more informed decisions.
⚖️ Conclusion
The issue of data in cars is not just a technical topic but an engineering and legal challenge that concerns information systems, security, systems design, and digital privacy. Engineers and researchers must work to invent balanced solutions that combine smart vehicle performance with the user’s data ownership rights.
As the industry moves toward greater connectivity and artificial intelligence, the existence of strict engineering frameworks and controls is a necessity to stand neutral between technological progress and the uncontrolled exploitation of data.
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