Ford introduced a privacy promise on Monday, a public commitment to safeguard customer vehicle data and give owners control over what they share, as the automaker prepares to launch a new generation of connected cars. The company also launched a website meant to explain to customers how, where and why Ford uses their data and to show them how to adjust those settings.
Kristin Jones, Ford's chief privacy officer, said in an interview that it is important for the company to clearly state its data practices and to make a commitment to customers about them. She described the effort as an opportunity to educate customers about how they share data. The controls themselves have existed for years, but Ford is aiming to communicate them more clearly ahead of new, more connected vehicles, including those built on its upcoming universal electric vehicle platform.
The push comes as automakers make their cars increasingly connected. Polling cited by the source shows U.S. customers want features enabled by that connectivity, such as remote start, navigation and driver-assistance software, but only 14% said they fully understand what data their vehicle collects. That gap has let some companies quietly sell data to third parties, a practice that got General Motors in trouble with the Federal Trade Commission and resulted in a $220 million settlement with 36 states last week.
Other companies have sought to market themselves as better stewards of customer data amid that limited awareness, including Slate Auto, the EV startup backed by Jeff Bezos, ahead of the expected launch of its minimalist pickup truck later this year. Jones said Ford surveyed 1,000 consumers and 91% said data privacy was a key consideration. She said people do not engage with the issue every day but want to know they are in control and have access to the information they need.
Jones, who joined Ford in 2024 after nearly two decades working on privacy in the legal, financial and healthcare fields, said the effort to improve how Ford communicates with customers about data sharing has been underway for most of her time at the company. She said she would not comment on competitors or on what has been in the news, but that people do not trust companies to take care with their data and Ford wants to build that trust.
Ford's new website features content explaining what data the company collects, how it uses the information and how customers can opt in or out. Jones said opting out of sharing some data will make some modern features inaccessible; turning off connected services, for example, disables real-time navigation and built-in access to roadside assistance. She said a goal of the privacy promise is to better justify why Ford asks for access to data and to make clear the information will not be used for purposes such as targeted advertising.
Access to data about a vehicle's health, Jones said, gives an owner better real-time information about whether the car needs maintenance and also supports research and development for future technologies. She said Ford does not share information about how customers drive their vehicles to data brokers, adding that the company is not trying to monetize data but to offer products and services customers derive value from.
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