With Electric Vehicle (EV) sales projected to soar to US$17 billion by 2028, the shift towards sustainable and eco-friendly transportation is clear. While EVs offer a promising solution to climate change and rising fuel costs, they also bring significant concerns about data privacy. EV owners often use personal devices to control, monitor, and operate their vehicles, which may grant manufacturers access to their personal data. This raises the question: How do EVs collect and use this data?
EVs and Data Collection
EVs are equipped with advanced telecommunications and information systems that collect a wide range of data. This includes data on vehicle operation, energy consumption, location and data collected through its software and sensors. EV models like Hyundai also gather biometric data such as facial recognition and fingerprints to enhance user experience and security.
Manufacturers like Mitsubishi are hoping to further develop technologies such as a Driver Monitoring System (DMS) to detect one’s current physical status by monitoring heart rate and other biometric data, such as the driver’s facial expressions and eye movement. Mitsubishi is hoping its DMS will detect serious physical conditions in drivers and notify the vehicle system to implement control measures, such as automatically stopping the vehicle, leading to enhanced safety. Additionally, EV users can control their vehicles remotely using their personal devices; they can open, lock, start their vehicles, enable keyless and automatic driving, adjust car settings, use GPS, and monitor vehicle performance and its operator. A registered owner 500 kilometres away from their EV can manage and monitor the vehicle and its operator’s minute-by-minute activities. While these features offer significant convenience and safety features for EV owners, the constant data collection and monitoring can feel intrusive and undermine the operator’s sense of autonomy because the operator may feel that these functions invade their privacy or create a sense of being watched.
EVs and Data Privacy Concerns
As EVs become more advanced, they will continue to collect and process vast amounts of data, including operational metrics, location information and personal and biometric data, raising important data privacy concerns. Third-party apps used for charging at EV charging stations, monitoring EVs and providing route planning can potentially access this data if privacy measures are not put in place. This information could be combined to create profiles of EV operators which may be exploited by data brokers and other third-party companies. Therefore, it is important to protect and secure personal and biometric data.
In 2022, ethical hackers revealed they had breached sixteen (16) EV applications from manufacturers such as BMW, Rolls Royce, Ferrari, Mercedez Benz and Porshe. They were able to gain access to Ferrari’s employee administrator accounts, allowing them to control and access all of Ferrari’s customers’ personal data globally.
If EV systems are not designed with privacy top of mind, manufacturers can face legal and financial risks due to non-compliance with data privacy regulations. As for owners, this can lead to the disclosure of personal data, such as contact information, driving habits and location tracking. Additionally, the integration of third-party applications within EV systems can increase the risk of data breaches, as these third-parties may not adhere to the same privacy standards as the EV manufacturers. This could result in unauthorized access and misuse of personal data. Therefore, prioritizing privacy and security in EV design is essential to mitigating these risks.
Balancing Convenience and Data Privacy
To protect their personal data and privacy, EV owners and users can:
- Be Informed: Understanding the potential risks and vulnerabilities associated with connected devices and using EVs is crucial. EV users and owners can take steps to ensure the privacy of personal data while enjoying the benefits of their vehicle.
- Read and Review the Privacy Notices of EV Manufacturers and Service Providers: Reading the privacy notice of EV manufacturers can help in understanding their data collection privacy practices, what data is collected about the EV user and owner, the purpose of collection, who it is shared with, how it is stored, and how it is deleted.
- Limit the Data Collected: EV users and owners can choose to limit the data collected based on their own preferences. Many EV features, such as location tracking or remote access, can be disabled if they are not needed. This can reduce the amount of personal data collected about EV users and owners.
EV users and owners can enjoy the convenience of their EVs while at the same time safeguard their personal data by staying aware. This way, they can benefit from their EVs while maintaining control over their personal data.