This is a most excellent place for technology news and articles.
My cars are not modern enough for that, but I always carry a surveillance device in my pocket to make up for it.
Eh, my phone is reasonably unlikely to spy on me. I use GrapheneOS with location off, no Google Play services most of the time (I have a separate profile for that BS), and the only app with location access is Organic Maps. My carrier could rat on me, but I don't think Google could.
But I have a smart watch (Pixel 2), but at least it's WiFi only so it can only rat on me when I get home. So I guess there's that.
Your carrier HAS ratted on you. Under the incoming US administration, I've little doubt they will again.
I wonder if this applies to MVNOs, or if their data is somehow aggregated. I haven't used a major carrier for over a decade.
That said, I can't really do anything about the carrier because I'd like to continue receiving calls and getting mobile data. So I'll cut down as much as I can, and to me that means cutting out Google.
I've considered switching to a VOIP service and running everything over a VPN (doesn't help with location, but cuts everything else out), but I haven't found one that's reliable. I need:
Bonus points if I can receive calls on my computer (I'd also love to switch to a Linux phone). If I can find that, I'll switch.
If your phone is connected to the cell network, then you can be tracked.
Yup, but not by Google, at least not directly.
The problem is I want to be able to receive calls and texts while out and about. My next step is to try switching to a VOIP service and only get 2FA codes on my carrier number. That doesn't stop location tracking from cell towers, but it does reduce how much they know about me, and it makes it easier to switch later (i.e. if making and receiving calls on my computers are good enough).
Privacy is a process, and it's an unfortunately frustrating one as companies sell out their customers more and more.
Anything of note that Mozilla didn't already cover? https://foundation.mozilla.org/en/blog/privacy-nightmare-on-wheels-every-car-brand-reviewed-by-mozilla-including-ford-volkswagen-and-toyota-flunks-privacy-test/
It shouldnt just be called a privacy risk. Its a safety risk because it enables stalking with little to zero effort on the stalkers side.
Please describe this zero-to-little effort attack chain.
You go to a data broker that sells "anonymized" location data and give them money and a region of interest. Done.
Yup. Police do that, and I'm guessing it wouldn't be too hard if you're persistent (claim to be a private investigator or something).
Found it (In german but we have translators these days...) https://netzpolitik.org/2024/databroker-files-firma-verschleudert-36-milliarden-standorte-von-menschen-in-deutschland/
This is about phone location data, but i dont see any reason why cars would be any different, they create less privacy sensitive data than phones in a way.
The people that wrote this article actually got a huge amount of slightly older data for free just as a sample. But this is the scale these data brokers operate at:
The data itself comes from the US company Datastream Group. It offers such location data on a monthly subscription basis. According to the offer, it comes from up to 163 countries and is updated hourly.
You can buy huge amounts of location data for anyone anywhere that uses a standard google or apple phone. Im not sure if you even need to have some random app, like socials or anything with ads in it, installed that leaks this data or if its just google and apple themselves that sell it. All you need is a single identifying point of confirmed time+location for your target and then you can reconstruct their entire movement from that.
This has very obvious and less obvious horrible implications. Things like tracking victims of abuse, finding out peoples home address after meeting them once, tracking military personnel movement, tracking people going to sex related locations, prisons, abortion clinics, endless potential for abuse.
Awesome!
The difference, though, is I can turn off my phone if I want to, but I can't really turn off the car tracking unless I tear apart the car to remove the antenna (or at least the power). Some cars make it easy in the fuse box, but others make it a PIA.
I'm planning to switch to a VOIP number and only use my SIM for data and SMS 2FA. Then I can turn off/remove the SIM as needed. Once I don't need SMS anymore, I can get a data only SIM and hopefully hide among the various iPads and smart watches.
I wish I could trust my carrier, but articles like the one you mentioned remind me that I really can't.
claim to be a private investigator or something
Oh no absolutely not necessary, this is commercially for sale data that anyone can buy as long as you dont make it obvious that you are up to no good. I will see if i can find the last article i saw about someone testing this themselves.
~~If this data is misused~~
When this data is misused
Modern cars have been privacy invading for a while. Goes back to the ownership torch thing again. Tesla can disable your car if they want. Why pay so much up front if you're not in control? Old vehicles are the way to go.
How would you even know about any of this stuff? I am not fortunate enough to afford a new vehicle but I imagine when you're at the dealer they're not like "so these cameras will watch you all the time... For safety and security, of course..."
I like the time they implied it would somehow protect people from sexual assault, but just ended up just revealing how personal the data they have can be
So how can I disconnect my car from the internet?
Rip out whatever transmitters they put in?
And frustratingly, it's different in each car. Sometimes it's in the center console, sometimes it's behind the infotainment system, and sometimes it's buried under the dash somewhere. Sometimes you'll get lucky and it'll have its own fuse, and other times it'll cause issues depending on which part you disconnect (SIM vs antenna).
It really sucks.
In general, don't allow it to connect to wifi. As for specific makes/models that might have their own uplink, look into disconnecting antennas.
My next vehicle is going to be fully mechanical with a carburetor and no computerized bullshit.
I'm really hoping Aptera is successful. Their main selling point is "solar mobility" basically, they designed a hyper-efficient car that looks sort of odd because efficiency is the main design factors. They hope to gain meaningful charge from solar panels on the vehicle because it's so efficient. They're thinking like 50 miles a day in someplace like California.
But they've also committed to being open with their vehicle and architecture by providing first-party spare parts and supporting open source stuff like open pilot.
If they keep on their consumer-friendly path, I'm hopeful for my data privacy if I get a future car from them
Just get an early OBD 2 car with no internet access and you are good or get an EFI kit for an old car as well. Carbs suck.
a well tuned carb will outperform an EFI system
for about two hours. 🤣
EFI is dynamic and adjusts the system as needed. However, a carb can be fixed with almost anything. I have a feeling that some of the older parts for EFI vehicles will be bought by major manufacturers and trashed/over priced to improve new vehicle sales and long term data collection goals. almost exactly how GM parts are today.
I mean if you are going to live off the grid, then I would just stock up on carb parts then haha. Otherwise, old school port injection EFI is extremely reliable. Just get a Toyota tundra or LandCruiser with the V8 without rust and you are good for 500,000 miles at least.
"Alfa builds a car to be as good as a car can be....briefly".
-Jezza
This is why I'll own older cars for the rest of my life.
Great. Now I can't jerk off in my car anymore!
Or maybe this is the perfect opportunity to stick it to The Man and jack off even more, exclusively in your car! Maybe get into some really freaky stuff, give'em a proper show!
Ooh, beads and whatnot sound fun.
Expulsion of an enema all over the camera would be tempting if it weren't such a mess to clean up. Maybe in a rental...
Towels work. Put them on anything that's hard to clean up, and it'll soak it all up. Oh, and leave the windows down so there are fewer issues with smells sticking around.
