Connected cars default to enabled location tracking

Semi-autonomous cars with built-in internet connections are increasingly being delivered with location tracking in place. Marketed as a convenience, the app FordPass links to Ford's Sync Infotainment system and can log frequent and recently visited locations. Similarly, GM Onstar's Family Link allows remote users to track family memories and receive alerts about the car's location. Although Ford says a "master reset" restores the car's factory settings, these systems still leave victims of domestic violence vulnerable to their partners' controlling behaviour and manipulation. In earlier efforts to negotiate a set of best privacy practices, Consumers Union found that car companies did not want to limit their data collection. Geolocation will be fundamental to the success of autonomous vehicles. 

https://motherboard.vice.com/en_us/article/gy3kw7/internet-connected-car-technology-can-enable-abusers-to-track-victims

writer: Tracey Lindeman
publication: Motherboard