Your Car Is Tracking You Just as Much as Your Smartphone Is

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[–][deleted] 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (2 children)

Doubt it. Android Auto is just an I/O interface. To draw an analogy, your keyboard and monitor don't record anything about what's on your hard drive or what your CPU is running. As far as I know, Apple CarPlay is fundamentally similar. In both cases, the privacy risk is no greater than that of a cell phone in your pocket.

Really, the whole article strikes me as overblown. Sure, if you have OnStar there is a sort of digital tether back to a call center and they can even locate you and maybe even immobilize you. I haven't seen a car with OnStar in years, though.

Same with a navigation system. New cars use Android Auto or CarPlay, and the risks are cell phone risks, not car risks.

[–]Brewdabier 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (1 child)

https://www.edmunds.com/car-technology/car-technology-and-privacy.html

A modern car with Bluetooth, navigation and an event data recorder is capable of knowing where you've been, who you've called, what your texts say and even whether you are wearing your seatbelt.

[–][deleted] 1 insightful - 2 fun1 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

Yeah, but those are dying technologies. I used Bluetooth to make calls, play music, and maybe send a few texts when I got my car. Once I discovered Android Auto, though, I didn't use that stuff anymore. (And I never had a nav system, but why wouldn't you just use an app for that too?)

Your phone has its own risks, but unlike a nav system or OnStar, I can throw my phone in the river.

I wonder how effective un-subscribing from OnStar is. To use your phrase, I think the equipment is still "capable of" some nasty, invasive shit. I wouldn't want it in my car. Same with LoJack and a lot of other crap.

Bottom line, this stuff isn't omnipotent and it serves you well to know what it all is and how it works. The article posted here is too sensationalist. It just extrapolates from a set of sensors and other hardware to the most sinister application possible.