Ever feel like your car knows you better than your best friend? With all the tech gadgets packed into modern vehicles, it’s not far from the truth. But if you’re keen on keeping your driving habits a secret, here’s how you can rein in your car’s data-sharing tendencies:
1. Dive into Your Car’s Privacy Settings: Your car isn’t just a vehicle; it’s a mini-computer on wheels. Check your infotainment system for privacy options. You might find a way to tell your car to keep your data to itself for services that aren’t critical.
2. Keep Your Phone at a Distance: When you plug in your phone, you’re practically inviting it to share your life’s story with your car. Try keeping your phone out of reach or turned off if you’re paranoid about privacy.
3. Use Privacy Apps: There are apps designed to keep your car’s data in check. They can tell you what’s being collected and might even help you clear out some of the digital footprints left behind.
4. Say No to Extra Services: If your car offers features like crash reporting or driving behavior analysis, you might be able to opt-out. Look for these options in your vehicle’s service menu or check with your manufacturer.
5. Know Your Rights: In places like California, you have the right to tell companies to delete your data or stop selling it. This applies to your car too – just contact the manufacturer or check their website for how to exercise your privacy rights.
6. Be Selective with Apps: Only pair your car with apps you trust and need. The fewer connections, the fewer paths for your data to leak.
7. Check the manual: As it turns out, that little book that came with your car is chock-full of helpful information, including directions on how to turn off many of the car’s connectivity features. If you’ve lost your manual, you can get a new one. This website will help you find the correct manual for your vehicle.
Which Cars Are Watching?
- Post-2010 Models: Cars from this era started getting tech upgrades, but it’s really from 2015 onwards that data collection kicked into high gear.
- 2020 and Newer: These babies are loaded with tech. They’re not just cars; they’re data machines on wheels, especially with 5G making data transfer lightning fast.
- Electric and Self-Driving Cars: These models are data hogs. They need all that info for safety features, performance tweaks, and to keep getting smarter.
The Catch? While you can cut back on how much your car blabs, you might not completely silence it. Some data collection is baked in for safety, like emergency responses, or because the law says so.
Stay Updated: Car tech is evolving, and so are privacy laws. Keep an eye on the latest trends and laws to stay ahead of the game in keeping your car’s data collection in check.
Is Your Car Watching You? pic.twitter.com/SHAP0HwZ0g
— illuminatibot (@iluminatibot) September 28, 2024