Your car is watching you.
That’s one of the takeaways from the high-speed, detailed data Tesla collected about the driver of its Cybertruck, which exploded in Las Vegas earlier this week. Privacy data experts say Elon Musk’s company’s thorough investigation was impressive, but also spotlighted a difficult issue as cars become less cars and more like computers on wheels. states.
Is your car company violating your privacy rights?
“You may want law enforcement to have your data to crack down on criminals, but can anyone have access to your data?” Jody, CEO of privacy consulting firm Red Clover Advisors・Mr. Daniels says: “Where are the tracks?”
Many modern cars not only know where you have been and where you are going, but also have access to your contacts, call logs, text messages and other sensitive information thanks to syncing with your mobile phone. It happens often.
Data collected by Mr. Musk’s electric vehicle company proved valuable to police in tracking the driver’s movements after a Cybertruck loaded with fireworks burst into flames in front of the Trump International Hotel on Wednesday. It turns out.
Within hours of the New Year’s Day explosion that burned the driver beyond recognition and injured seven others, Tesla was able to track in detail Matthew Leiblesberger’s movements from Denver to Las Vegas, and the problem It was also confirmed that it was not the truck itself, but an explosive inside the truck. . Tesla used data collected from charging stations and in-vehicle software to great acclaim.
“We especially have to thank Elon Musk,” Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Sheriff Kevin McMahill told reporters. “He gave us quite a bit of additional information.”
Some privacy experts were less enthusiastic.
“This makes it clear that there is some type of mass surveillance going on,” said David Choffness, executive director of Northeastern University’s Cybersecurity and Privacy Institute in Boston. “It helps when something bad happens, but it’s also a double-edged sword. Companies that collect this data can misuse it.”
General Motors, for example, was sued by the Texas attorney general in August for allegedly selling the data of 1.8 million drivers to insurance companies without their consent.
Cars equipped with cameras that enable self-driving capabilities have added new security risks. Tesla itself revealed how its employees shared confidential videos and recordings of its drivers between 2019 and 2022, including videos of road rage incidents and, in one case, nudity. , was criticized.
Tesla did not respond to emailed questions about its privacy policy. Tesla says on its website that it follows strict rules to keep names and information private.
“No one but you knows about your activities, location, or history of where you’ve been,” the statement said. “Your information will be kept private and secure.”
Sam Abuelsamid, an auto analyst at Telemetry Insights, said he doesn’t think Tesla is “particularly worse” than other car companies in handling customer data, but he’s still concerned.
“This is one of the biggest ethical issues we have with modern cars: they are connected,” he said. “Consumers need to be in control of their data.”
Tensions escalated when a Cybertruck parked at the front door of President Trump’s hotel began smoking and then burst into flames. Just hours earlier, the driver of another vehicle using the same peer-to-peer car rental service Turo plowed into a crowd in New Orleans, killing 15 people in what law enforcement called a terrorist attack. There is.
LAS VEGAS, NV – JANUARY 1: A Cybertruck covered with a tarp is seen parked in the valet area of the Trump International Hotel on January 1, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by David Becker for The Washington Post)
Shortly before 1 p.m., Las Vegas police announced they were investigating a second incident.
“The fire is extinguished,” police announced on social media platform X, one of Musk’s other companies. “Please avoid that area.”
Tesla sprang into action soon after.
“Tesla’s entire senior team is currently investigating this matter. We will post more information as soon as we know anything,” Musk wrote on X.
Over the next few hours, Tesla tracked Libersberger’s five-day journey across four states, including tracking charging stops in locations as diverse as Monument, Colorado, Albuquerque, New Mexico, and Flagstaff, Arizona. I was able to piece together my journey.
There are no federal laws regulating vehicle data that would limit the collection and sharing of information by banks or health care providers. And state laws are a collection of different rules, primarily focused on data privacy in general.
Privacy consultant Daniels believes new national laws are needed because rules have not kept up with technology.
“I think law enforcement should have access to data that helps them resolve things quickly,” she says. “But we have a right to privacy.”
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