The American car manufacturer General Motors was fined a huge amount for selling user data collected through smart car systems, but it seems that it is not alone in this, as famous and widespread car brands in the Arab region such as Toyota, Kia and Hyundai share this.
Hot Topics
5 red and purple foods that may help support heart health
A Chinese robot and a Russian robot attack humans Has the rebellion begun?
The American company "GM" - headquartered in Detroit - owns a large number of prominent and widespread brands such as "Chevrolet" and "Cadillac", which are among the most widespread cars in the United States .
The reason the Federal Trade Commission fined the company is that it collected user data through its smart car systems and then shared it with third parties, including accident insurance companies, which in turn used this data to determine the value of each user's insurance, according to a report by the American technology website "The Verge".
According to Reuters, General Motors has agreed to pay $12.75 million to settle a California investigation into allegations that it illegally sold detailed information about the driving habits of hundreds of thousands of Californians to two data trading companies, the state's Attorney General, Rob Ponta.
Drivers were unaware that their data was being collected to this extent, as the data included the frequency and times of driving, the places the car owner frequented, and even his driving speed and safety rating.
The Federal Trade Commission forced GM to make several changes to its data collection system so that it would be easier for drivers to stop the data collection and sharing process.
The data that can be collected from smart cars represents a new and dangerous type of data available to companies, because some users treat the car as a safe zone, as well as associating it with the user's movement throughout the day.
The Verge's technology report stated that the privacy and data collection crisis in cars is more serious than in mobile phones and various applications, because privacy options in cars are not as clear and effective.
Toyota and Hyundai are also accused
In a related context, a report by the Australian website "Watch Car by Wheels" - which specializes in cars and their news - revealed that the crisis of collecting user data has reached Australian society with two of the most widespread types of cars, namely the Japanese "Toyota" and the Korean "Hyundai".
The group mentioned about 10 different car brands, among them Toyota and Hyundai, which were alarmingly the most data-collecting. The Korean brand collects users' voiceprints and shares them with third parties, while Toyota collects data on driving, braking, speed, and other factors and shares them with third parties as well.
A BBC report published last May revealed a larger crisis in data collected through cars, which is not limited to car data only.
The data collected by companies extends to the user's weight, tone of voice, age, race, and facial expressions, using in-car cameras pointed at the driver.
Tags:
technology
