All 25 brands studied by Mozilla earned its “*Privacy Not Included,” warning label the open-source nonprofit said in a September report. That makes “cars the official worst category of products for privacy that we have ever reviewed,” Mozilla said.
Mozilla spent 600 hours researching automakers’ privacy practices but could not answer many of its questions, it said. “If three privacy researchers can barely get to the bottom of what’s going on with cars, how does the average time-pressed person stand a chance?” Mozilla said.
Here are four reasons why “cars are the worst” for privacy, according to Mozilla:
- All cars collect too much personal information. Modern vehicles collect information through how consumers interact with their cars, the connected services people use, in-car apps that allow automakers to access phone data and third-party sources like Google Maps. That can enable automakers to gather data about consumers’ genetics, sex lives and more, Mozilla said. “They then use it to invent more data about you through ‘inferences’ about things like your intelligence, abilities, and interests,” the report says.
- Most automakers (84%) share or sell consumer data. The report says most car brands can share consumer data with service providers, data brokers and other businesses. Three-quarters of automakers say they can sell personal data, according to Mozilla. More than half may share that information with the government or law enforcement upon request. “So while you are getting from A to B, you’re also funding your car’s thriving side-hustle in the data business in more ways than one,” the report says.
- Consumers usually have little to no control over their data. Renault and Dacia, owned by Renault Group, were the only two brands to allow drivers to delete all personal data. The other 23 brands don’t. “Car brands often do whatever they can legally get away with to your personal data,” the report says.
- Mozilla could not confirm whether any car brand met its minimum security standards. The report says Mozilla could not figure out whether any of the cars studied encrypted all personal data, even after discussing it with Ford, Honda and Mercedes-Benz.
Tesla was the second product ever to get dinged by Mozilla in every privacy category, mainly due to problems related to its Autopilot and Full Self-Driving Beta systems.
The nonprofit wants people to sign a petition to encourage vehicle manufacturers to improve their privacy practices.
