I came across an article about car manufacturers selling anything and everything they can get from your cars data stream. Tesla got the worst ranking but every car manufacturer is doing this except cars sold in Europe where they actually have privacy laws.
Tesla is only the second product we have ever reviewed to receive all of our privacy “dings.” (The first was an AI chatbot we reviewed earlier this year.) What set them apart was earning the “untrustworthy AI” ding. The brand’s AI-powered autopilot was reportedly involved in 17 deaths and 736 crashes and is currently the subject of multiple government investigations.
So when car companies say they have your “consent” or won’t do something “without your consent,” it often doesn’t mean what it should. Like when Tesla says, that sure! You can opt out of data collection, but it might break your car:
However, “if you no longer wish for us to collect vehicle data or any other data from your Tesla vehicle, please contact us to deactivate connectivity. Please note, certain advanced features such as over-the-air updates, remote services, and interactivity with mobile applications and in-car features such as location search, Internet radio, voice commands, and web browser functionality rely on such connectivity. If you choose to opt out of vehicle data collection (with the exception of in-car Data Sharing preferences), we will not be able to know or notify you of issues applicable to your vehicle in real time. This may result in your vehicle suffering from reduced functionality, serious damage, or inoperability."
TESLA'S CUSTOMER PRIVACY NOTICE
https://www.tesla.com/legal/privacy
Tesla is only the second product we have ever reviewed to receive all of our privacy “dings.” (The first was an AI chatbot we reviewed earlier this year.) What set them apart was earning the “untrustworthy AI” ding. The brand’s AI-powered autopilot was reportedly involved in 17 deaths and 736 crashes and is currently the subject of multiple government investigations.
So when car companies say they have your “consent” or won’t do something “without your consent,” it often doesn’t mean what it should. Like when Tesla says, that sure! You can opt out of data collection, but it might break your car:
However, “if you no longer wish for us to collect vehicle data or any other data from your Tesla vehicle, please contact us to deactivate connectivity. Please note, certain advanced features such as over-the-air updates, remote services, and interactivity with mobile applications and in-car features such as location search, Internet radio, voice commands, and web browser functionality rely on such connectivity. If you choose to opt out of vehicle data collection (with the exception of in-car Data Sharing preferences), we will not be able to know or notify you of issues applicable to your vehicle in real time. This may result in your vehicle suffering from reduced functionality, serious damage, or inoperability."
TESLA'S CUSTOMER PRIVACY NOTICE
https://www.tesla.com/legal/privacy