Your car could be collecting your personal information – even your sexual orientation – NBC4 Washington

By now, most of us know that cell phones and fitness trackers collect and share our data. But you might be surprised to find that your car does this too, and experts say that’s where the real shock lies Type of the information collected.

In some cases, it may involve sensitive information such as your sex life, sexual orientation or religious affiliation.

We’ll give you something to stew for the next time you’re stuck in DC traffic. All those sensors, cameras, and microphones that automakers brag about and that buyers might pay extra for could be collecting and sharing your personal information.

Every move you make, every text message or call you answer, your car may be taking notes.

It’s legal and is listed directly in a car’s privacy policy – which many buyers don’t read but technically agreed to when they bought their car.

“Most people say, ‘Well, I bought a car last year. I don’t remember agreeing to a privacy policy.’ And that’s probably because you didn’t notice it, or at least didn’t really notice anything,” said Jen Caltrider, privacy expert at the Mozilla Foundation, a nonprofit focused on making the Internet safer.

Her team reviewed the consumer protection agreements of 25 of the most popular car brands. They found that 84% of them share or sell your data.

How Do car companies receive your personal information?

Much of the information automakers collect comes from ordinary car owners doing seemingly ordinary things — like downloading their vehicle’s app to use features like remote start or connecting their phones to their car’s Bluetooth system.

“The connected services can also collect a lot of information,” Caltrider said. “Then the automakers go on to say that they can collect information from third-party sources, so public information about you or information from government sources or social media.”

Automakers can combine all of this information about you from your car — along with personal information they get from third parties — and share or sell it to all kinds of companies that we know little or nothing about, she said.

“I’m often asked, ‘How do they collect information about my sexual activity?’ And I don’t know if they actually are,” Caltrider said. “All I can say for sure when we read the privacy policy was that they required you to agree to a privacy policy that said this was possible.”

So what can you do about it?

Andrea Amico, founder of Privacy4Cars, says vehicle owners no longer have to sift through pages of privacy policies. His company has created a database where you can enter your car’s VIN number to see exactly what types of information your car collects about you and how it is used.

“Anyone can go to VehiclePrivacyReport.com and enter the VIN number. We’ll give you a report on your car for free,” Amico said. “What did they collect? Where are we going?”

According to the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, which represents the industry, some data collected from your vehicle can be helpful to drivers.

The group says certain data can enable life-saving safety systems, such as heart monitors in the steering wheel or a seat belt, that can detect whether a driver is having a medical emergency. However, the alliance agrees that the privacy policy “could be a little confusing when it takes into account the random collection and inferences made from, for example, where the vehicle may have been driven.”

That’s why they’re calling on Congress to pass a federal consumer privacy law that provides car owners with a very clear privacy policy so there is no doubt about what information is collected and how it is used.

Data protection experts agree on this.

“It’s nice to see regulators being pushed in a direction that’s trying to take action to protect consumers a little bit,” Caltrider said.

Is there a way to opt out of data collection for your car?

The answer is “sort of” – but it has consequences. For example, if you don’t download the vehicle’s app, you won’t have access to remote start or other features the app offers. And if you do not agree to the Privacy Policy or any portion thereof, your warranty may be voided.

It’s not just your vehicle’s data protection regulations that play a role. Your radio apps, car emergency call systems, and GPS apps each have their own privacy policies when it comes to how your personal information is collected.