OnSpy: The GPS Privacy Invasion

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After buying your new Cadillac, you take it out for a test drive on a windy, country road. The open sunroof provides a warm breeze that waves through your hair. You reach down to adjust the stereo and you don’t notice a bend in the road and you and your new car are now logded in a ditch. You are safe thanks to the abundance of airbags, but your car is another story. After you find your way out of the mangled metallic mess that was your car, you notice that your cell phone has no reception, but since you bought a General Motors vehicle, you can push the little blue OnStar button on your dash and help will be on the way. All you have to do is tell the OnStar agent what type of emergency you have and within minutes, a tow truck is on the scene, pulling your car out of the ditch and giving you a ride home. That is an example of another perk of having modern technology on hand, in this case the Global Positioning System (GPS).

GPS can be amazing for situations like that and for many others from being lost in a big city to finding your way to a new hunting spot, but there is a definite worry when it comes to GPS and that is an invasion of privacy. If you look back to our OnStar example, how does the OnStar agent know who you are, where you are, and what kind of car you have? Simple, when you sign up for OnStar or buy a car that has it already installed (all new GM’s, some Acura’s, and a handful of others) you are agreeing to let OnStar not only know who you are (your drivers’ license number) but also you car’s vin number (providing all of the information about your car’s history), license plate, and your location at all times. This could lead to OnStar selling your information not only to telemarketers and advertisors, but also to indenty theives. The following is from OnStar’s privacy statement at onstar.com:

“OnStar may share your contact information, information about your current OnStar services, your car’s Vehicle Identification Number (VIN), and information about the use of your car’s features with the maker of your car (and its wholly-owned subsidiaries), with car dealers, XM Satellite Radio, Inc., and with our wireless service providers for purposes of offering you products and services. Your information may also be shared with our suppliers for the exclusive purpose of providing services for us.

Your contact information, information about your current OnStar services and certain information from your car (i.e., odometer reading) may be shared with our business partners exclusively to conduct joint marketing programs with OnStar or to confirm eligibility in car insurance discount programs. We may also share information with our business partners in other circumstances with your permission. OnStar will not share any information with other third parties for their independent use without your permission.”

The only thing that you can do to stop the sharing/selling of your information is for an individual to tell them that they can’t, because that is your right under the constitution. And if you do, they will, because it is the law. But how many people do that? Not many because barely anyone knows that OnStar, as well as other companies, can do that and the ones that do know may not know how.

A scarier invasion of privacy is that OnStar can listen to anything in your car whenever they want for any reason. Don’t believe me, thbis is also from OnStar’s privacy statement:

“OnStar provides service to your car through wireless networks. Although it is illegal for unauthorized people to intercept your calls, such interceptions of wireless communications can occur.”

By saying that “interceptions of wireless communications (any sound coming from the inside of your car that has been listened to by OnStar) can occur,” they have legally enabled themselves to listen whenever they want for no particular reason. Why would they want to do that? OnStar is owned by General Motors and wouldn’t they love to know what you are saying about their cars while you are driving them? Even though this is being used as a business tactic, someone could still be listening to your converstaion in your car at any time and who’s to say who else could get their hands on that information, like other companies looking to sell to your needs or the government looking for possible terrorists under the Patriot Act (this also happens).

OnStar isn’t the only GPS technology that has issues with privacy, some large rental car companies use GPS to track their cars and cell phone technology to listen to their customers. The main reason, cited from the car rental companies, is to prevent loss of stolen cars and to aid customers in emergencies, which is great but they also use it to cite you for speeding and other traffic violations. When you sign all of that paperwork, some companies have a clause that states that you will not willingly break any local traffic laws and if you do, they will know.

GPS is a fantastic technology that in no way should be eliminated, but it needs to be used with caution because as the world quickly becomes interconnected, it also falls into the shadow of big brother.

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