Connected Cars Are a Surveillance Platform
Researchers from Northeastern University and Consumer Reports reviewed privacy policies and filings from 15 major automakers to assess how much data modern connected cars collect on drivers and how that data flows to third parties, including insurance technology companies and data brokers.
Why this matters: Your car now collects more about you than most apps on your phone. Where you go, when, how fast, how hard you brake. That data does not stay with the automaker. It moves to data brokers and insurtech companies who help set your insurance rates. You probably did not agree to that in any meaningful way. The problem is not just privacy in the abstract. It is that driving behavior collected without clear consent can quietly cost you money or flag you to parties you never knew were watching.
Who should care: Lawyers · Compliance · Privacy officers · Cybersecurity · General readers · Policy
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