Must be. Reading the article, most of the problems the writer was having would be highly illegal in the EU. A company like Honda would definitely be aware of that
The hero photo for the article shows a camera over a road that likely is likely running number plate recognition software...
Honestly I'd be more worried about where that data is going than the tracking software in your car. They've got the most critical information (where did you drive and when), and they've got it for every car instead of just Honda drivers.
This needs to be fixed with legislation, and it needs to be fixed actively. For example by getting rid of number plates entirely and replacing them with something like the transponders used in aircrafts and ships, but with an encrypted rolling code that only shares your data when authorised to do so (by the owner of the vehicle).
Apple "Find My" works like that... your location is encrypted, and it's uploaded without any identifying information. When the user brings up a map looking for their keys, that's the only time encryption keys are handed over allowing the already stored information to be accessed. The car version of that could be police asking you at every traffic stop to hit a button on your dashboard that unlocks your registration/insurance details so they can run a quick check against their outstanding warrant/etc database.
I was just thinking yesterday what car I would get if I had infinite money and while I'm sure such one probably exists I couldn't came up with one that I'd like better than my -07 Nissan Navara. I mean yeah I would ofcourse do a total overhaul on it and add a bunch of offroad accessories and such but the truck itself basically has everything I need and switching to a newer one would just add stuff I dont want.
I like cars and trucks but I'm extremely uninterested in most of the new ones. Something similar happened with them as with smartphones when they turned from tools into fashion accessories you use to show off to your friends. Can't we just have ones that are decent looking and come with the basic necesary features and nothing more? I want it simple, reliable and easy to fix. I don't want a computer on wheels.
I really don't understand why going EV seems to be synonymous with "collect all the data." The only differences should be in the drivetrain, and they don't need to collect any data to switch that to an electric motor from an ICE or Hydrid drive system.
The sad part is that manual transmissions are going away, which means I'm completely SOL if the electronics die. But I guess on the flipside, there's no transmission to break, so that's nice.
I think competition is pretty good right now, the main issue is range. Toyota is claiming to have much longer range battery tech in like 3 years (they've promised before), so if that materializes, we could see really compelling EVs in like 5 years.
I suspect that it's because they are marketed to be as much of a tech gadget as transportation. An iPad on wheels. So they figure that they can slip in this crap.
Yeah, and I really don't want that crap. I just want something to get me from A to B that I can fill up at home. Give me something cheap and reliable and I'll buy it.
My point is people shouldn't need to try to outsmart the car manufacturer for basic privacy rights. If you don't fully control something you don't own something.
Imagine if they remotely bricked a bunch of vehicles. (Ransomware maybe?) You would be powerless to stop them and out of luck. I'm sure there would be a lawsuit but you still would be without a car.
Disconnecting the antenna is probably not a bad idea but the problem is cars have become black box computers so you never know where there could be a weakness. For all you know it might be possible to crash the car systems via Bluetooth.
What I want is some user freedom laws plus some DMCA exceptions for consumers looking to escape vendor lock in. Privacy protections would also be nice but being able to change and examine software would be a step in the right direction.
The newer model CR-V doesn't need an app, it's just a toggle in the car settings. That icon at the top like the article shows is definitely annoying and I agree in calling it a dark pattern.
The size of the title on that article is insane on a monitor.
Anyway.
Companies are quick to flaunt their privacy policies, but those amount to pages upon pages of legalese that leave even professionals stumped about what exactly car companies collect and where that information might go.
Does anyone remember that report about the university researchers who studied one of these smart thermostats and concluded that you would have to sign more than a thousand legal disclaimers to properly consent to have it in your home?
It's not even limited to smart cars though. Yes used does let you a oid it, but it's not like this is just people buying the fancy trims either. Shit like this is working it's way down to the run of the mill standard cars year after year.
There isn't much of an alternative. All major manufacturers have been doing this for a while, we are approaching the point where you'll need to buy and maintain a classic car to avoid this type of data collection. Unfortunately, most people simply do not have the time, money, and expertise to do that. Nor should they have to.
Call me an asshole but I think giving driving habit information to insurers is great, so long as good habits are given discounts and bad habits are punished.
I'm one of those people who would love automatic enforcement of driving laws as well as user reportable incidents of other drivers (given you can provide footage of something you're reporting.)
If people don't like living under the law... maybe the law shouldn't exist. "That's the way it is" is a terrible excuse for fucking anything.
Oh, and make audit trails for this shit public record. Someone creating AI videos or fake reports? Punish that too. It'll never happen though. People want laws for others, not themselves.
who picks what habits are good and what are bad? who decides what happens to data beyond this? can you going to mcdonalds twice a day be shared with your health insurer? can you going to that rally be shared with the local police? with your landlord? are you comfortable with everyone knowing everything? because there's two things you do with data: analyze, and sell.
I mean they use the data to decide what actions are high risk. Someone tailgating and tapping their brakes constantly is inherently less safe than someone leaving proper distance.
Privacy theft, I get it. An opt out should always be available and easy to use.
If you truly have an issue with insurance deciding what is or isn't safe there are organizations that can take over that such as ASTM or NFPA.
Honestly it doesn't really matter what you or I are really in favor of when it comes to privacy and surveillance. Today we're already tracked everywhere. Data privacy is a nice idea and even with all the laws in the world there is no transparency to make sure companies follow them. Our car tracking us is annoying and all but we all carry these things called cell phones which have GPS in them and we keep them on all the time. How many people have apps like facebook installed which harvest all kinds of data and then sell it to whoever is willing to pay? Speeding is already going to be seen with just that data. Even if you turn all the tracking off on your phone the fucking cell company knows where you're connecting from and that data goes right into a little database in a three letter agency.
The US Government today can legally get whatever data they want from anywhere in the US and most of europe. Maybe not your local cop, but someone, somewhere, taking orders from the US government in the name of something like terrorism has access to everything. Corruption is everywhere and everything can and will be abused. Opaque systems like we have today only proliferates corruption.
Technological solutions can absolutely be developed that are transparent and don't give exceptions to cops driving personal vehicles. We absolutely can develop systems where senators, representatives and even billionaires are not above the law, but today in practice they essentially are.
But hey, like I said. My opinion doesn't matter. Yours doesn't either. We don't get any say in how this stuff works. The idea that enforcement of our laws might be applied consistently across the board is terrifying to people because we all do illegal shit all day long in our own little personal corrupt universe. We just want to believe the cops will stop "the other guy" more than us and that we'll be able to be smarter than the system. It's fucked and nothing will change. The owners of the US just want the cops there so they can punish the ones who act out in the order of things in a way that might hurt them or their friends and family, and that's how it's gonna work.
no thanks. i hate the entire concept of insurance (especially lawfully forced insurance). there's no way i want them spying on me.
there are parts of the west where there's not another car for miles. why should i be punished for minor infractions on a lonely country road when i put no one but myself at risk? this is the same as getting ticketed by a camera for running a red light in the middle of nowhere.
if the law and technology becomes a tool of oppression, it no longer serves a useful purpose for mankind.
i think that if i am going to be forced to purchase a product from the market, then the government should just provide the product. add the damages to my tax bill if i get in an accident that's my fault.
but don't make me buy shit just to function in society.
it's a scam. the money you pay in is always more than they pay out. it's a for profit industry that i'm forced to fund. it's a racket, no different from organized crime.
Our government will forcibly insure you if you don't have one, so technically you don't have to buy anything. It's just more expensive than anything on the market.
Yeah let's encourage citizens to report their neighbors for every legal offense, this kind of thing has always gone well throughout history
Say, I'm pretty sure I saw you invite a couple folks into your home the other day, and I never saw them come out. Oh would you look at that, the SS is here!
Similarities to fascism aside, this is still an awful idea. Have you ever dealt with automated rule enforcement? It's an awful way to enforce rules. But even if every single report had a human follow up on it, there's also massive, unprecedented privacy issues. You may be totally fine with my insurance company knowing where I am 24/7, but I sure as hell am not. I'm super not okay with a government (which we have) gaining free access to that information for anything they want (which they would). Oh hey, we're back to fascism
Without absolute transparency and total accountability it's going to be abused, but we already live in a surveillance dystopia. Have you ever seen what happens to whistle blowers today?
