Your car’s data privacy problems are worse than you think

<figure> <img alt="hands on steering wheel in a BMW" data-caption="" data-portal-copyright="Photo: NurPhoto via Getty Images" data-has-syndication-rights="1" src="https://platform.theverge.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/09/gettyimages-2247409540.jpg?quality=90&#038;strip=all&#038;crop=0,0,100,100" /> <figcaption> </figcaption> </figure> <p class="wp-block-paragraph">You hear it all the time: Modern cars are basically smartphones on wheels. And just like the phone in your pocket, the car in your driveway collects vast amounts of data - tracking where you drive, how fast you accelerate, how hard you brake, how aggressively you turn, and much more.</p> <p class="wp-block-paragraph">The legality of this data harvesting remains hotly debated. Last year, <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2025/1/16/24345470/gm-banned-selling-driving-data-insurance-ftc">the Federal Trade Commission penalized General Motors</a> for illegally collecting and selling precise location and driving behavior data without informed consent. Other automakers, like <a href="https://privacy.ca.gov/2026/03/ford-to-change-practices-pay-fine-for-adding-unnecessary-friction-to-opt-out-process/">Ford</a> and <a href="https://cppa.ca.gov/announcements/2025/20250312.html">Honda</a>, have faced minor fines for making it overly difficult for customers to opt out. While industr …</p> <p><a href="https://www.theverge.com/transportation/1001463/car-data-privacy-northeastern-study-honda-gm-ford">Read the full story at The Verge.</a></p>