I can hear it from inside the car!
We talked about AI-powered cameras, or mobile phones, that can detect speeding violations. Now, car manufacturers are joining in on the attack on your privacy.
“Our investigation revealed that General Motors engaged in egregious business practices that violated Texans' privacy and violated the law. We will hold them accountable.”
Take Ford, for example. The iconic American company recently filed for a not-so-American patent for technology that allows cars to snitch on drivers.
qualified “System and method for detecting speeding violations” — Though not quite as catchy as “Built Ford Tough” — the patent application details a system that uses a vehicle’s cameras and sensors to detect speeding drivers and report them to authorities.
The filing includes a basic explanation of how the technology detects speeding violations, activates cameras to capture images, and sends the data to nearby “tracking vehicles” or records it on a server. Contains detailed sketches and flowcharts. Captured data such as speed, GPS location, clear images and videos can be sent to authorities for potential action.
Ford says it is developing this technology for police cars. In other words, don't worry. This invasive surveillance technology is exclusively in the hands of states.
And the company probably will. never Consider adapting it as your own The car can call the nearby police to stop you.
Then there's GM.
Did you know that the company cares so much about you keeping your data safe that it has combined five different and lengthy privacy statements into one? 1 disclosure document?
Talk about putting the customer first. Yes, there are ways that massive litigation and widespread public backlash will facilitate that.
Last month, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit On behalf of the state, the lawsuit against GM accused the automaker of installing technology in more than 14 million vehicles that collected data about drivers and then selling it to insurance companies and other companies without the drivers' consent.
The lawsuit says this data can be used to determine whether more than 1.8 million Texas drivers have “bad” habits such as speeding, braking hard, steering hard into turns, not wearing a seatbelt, or driving late at night. It claims that it was used to create a “driving score” to evaluate. . Insurers will be able to use that data when deciding whether to increase premiums, cancel policies, or deny coverage.
This technology is said to have been installed in most GM vehicles starting with the 2015 model year. Paxton said GM's approach is to mislead unsuspecting consumers who have just completed a stressful buying and leasing process into believing they must enroll in OnStar, the company's diagnostic product that collects data. He said that it was the dealer's method to do so.
“Companies are using invasive technologies to violate people's rights in unthinkable ways,” Paxton said in a statement. “Our investigation revealed that General Motors engaged in egregious business practices that violated Texans' privacy and violated the law. We will hold them accountable.”
This isn't the first time Texas has stood up for drivers. Gov. Greg Abbott banned red light cameras in 2019, two years after KXAN-NBC in Austin, Texas, reported that nearly every city with them illegally issued traffic tickets. signed a bill to do so.
Their investigation found that drivers have paid the city of Austin more than $7 million in fines since the cameras were installed, and that Texas cities have gained more than $500 million in revenue from the cameras since 2007. It also turned out that.
