Some will call people security conscious, others paranoid, but what many don’t realize is the amount of data collected by our vehicles. We’ve come to understand that our smartphones are little listening devices that collect tons of information about us, which is almost impossible to avoid, but many don’t realize their cars are doing the same thing. Some vehicles collect data that can be problematic in your personal and professional life, especially if the data isn’t cleared before selling the car.

What are the risks of your car’s data being collected and shared?

Your vehicle stores information in one or more of the many onboard computers. If you utilize any form of traffic data or GPS location systems, your vehicle likely stores your latest routes, most common places visited, and how often you go to these locations. This means it’s recording where you live, work, shop, and travel with frequency and your general schedule, leaving you exposed to potential trouble.
Other risks involved in this data collection include:

• Personal and professional communication is exposed – This includes your health status, media tastes, and work communication.
• Hacking – Automakers hire hackers to show how car systems can be breached. This could certainly happen to anyone when hackers access the computer systems and collect data or take control of the vehicle to do you harm
• Other could limit your access – If you lease, rent, or share your car another entity can monitor your behavior and limit access to systems within the vehicle

How does your car share data with other parties?

Your car is almost always collecting data about you and your habits. The systems share this information to bring you more information and help you care for your car, receive appropriate advertising, and improve your driving experience, but it can cause trouble for you. Your vehicle shared data in four different ways, which are:

• Via cellular network signal
• Through the Wi-Fi connection
• Via Bluetooth devices
• Through the USB drive

While not all of these systems are directly accessible through over-the-air systems, once the car copies the data, there’s no telling what happens to that information.

What data is your car collecting?

Some models are more personal than others, while some only collect data required to get you from one place to another. Regardless, the data collected could become problematic for you when this information falls into the wrong hands.
The data collected could include:

• Vehicle identification number
• Mileage, speed, fuel level, and oil life
• Tire pressure, engine temperature, and battery status
• Brakes, steering, and acceleration patterns
• GPS location, destination, and route
• Voice commands, phone calls, and text messages
• Media preferences, playlists, and contacts
• Biometric data – heart rate, blood pressure, and stress level

Much of the collected data is essential for your car’s performance, providing you with alerts and information to schedule maintenance visits and updates. Other information is used to improve your driving experience, while some are personal and should be private. Unfortunately, in a world where we expect computers to remember/store information to be used later, this can be problematic and create security weaknesses in your life.

Can you protect your privacy and the data collected by your car?

Although your car is almost always collecting data about you, there are ways to protect your privacy and ensure your car isn’t a security weakness. Some of these tips involve actions you should take when you sell your vehicle, while others are actions you should take regularly.
Protect your privacy and data by:

• Erasing all your personal data and settings before selling or trading the car
• Perform a factory reset when you buy a used car
• Only give access to your data to trusted third parties
• Use strong passwords and two-factor authentication for apps and services
• Limit data collected when connecting to your car
• Disable or delete apps you don’t trust
• Opt out of mobile location sharing
• Don’t use apps if you’re concerned about targeted advertising
• Actually read the privacy policy and terms of service to learn what data the manufacturer will collect

Like it or not, your car is constantly collecting data from you while driving. Whether that’s simply car service information or personal information about your schedule, contacts, and conversations, this data is being collected and could be at risk if you don’t take action to prevent your car from being a security weakness in your life.

The post Beware! Your Car Might be Collecting Your Personal Data first appeared on Ride4Watts.com.

The post Beware! Your Car Might be Collecting Your Personal Data appeared first on Ride4Watts.com.