Using wireless connectivity and telematics, cars are now collecting vast amounts of personal data, according a new study from B.C. Freedom of Information and Privacy Association.
The study, named The Connected Car: Who is in the Driver's Seat?, examines in detail how cars morphed from a simple means of transportation into computers on wheels. The next generation of "Connected Cars" are capable of remarkable feats including diagnosing problems with the vehicle, monitoring driving behavior and providing customized infotainment services.
"Through telematics and wireless connectivity, cars are collecting and processing enormous amounts of data," FIPA Executive Director, Vincent Gogolek says. "More and more of this data is personal information, and some of it reveals intensely private details of a person's life."
The data gathered from these new smart cars can be used for safety, monitoring, usage-based insurance programs and even customer relationship management. However, these same technologies that make life much more entertaining and convenient can also be used to track and profile customers for marketing or other purposes.
"Some of the data collected and transmitted for data-mining and market research is simply not necessary for services and applications to work," the report's head researcher and privacy lawyer, Pippa Lawson says. "It opens the door to a range of privacy risks that include security breaches, malicious access and state surveillance."
The report finds that while most programs generally comply with the law, many services are failing to meet their legal obligations and customers are often given very little choice about how their personal data is handled after it has been collected by these Connected Cars.
"The good news is that there's still time to address these privacy challenges" Gogolek says, "but with Connected Cars set to mass-penetrate North American markets in the coming years, we need to get serious about setting industry standards and putting guidelines in place."
"We're trying to lay down broad principles and make recommendations that hopefully we can take forward. Nobody wants to have this thing turn into a situation where people are paranoid about their cars."
Some car companies have begun to make data privacy and protection a priority. Sascha Heiniger, director of strategic brand communication for Volvo Car Corporation, said, "Volvo does not only want to protect its customers in the car (and others around the car) - but also puts a high emphasis on protecting the data of its car users. That is why all personal data related to the connected Volvo car belongs to the customer."
