Ford has pledged not to sell customer driving data to third-party data brokers, a privacy commitment the automaker is using to distinguish itself from rivals that have drawn legal and regulatory scrutiny for sharing telematics without authorization.
Under the promise, Ford said it will work to safeguard customer information through aggregation and anonymization. The company said it will give customers clear, easy-to-understand information about how their personal data is used. Ford also said it will continue using data to improve safety while letting customers decide how much or how little they share. Kristin Jones, Ford's chief privacy officer, said in a blog post that trust is earned and that protecting personal information is one way the company intends to earn it daily.
The announcement follows General Motors' agreement to pay $220 million to settle claims that it illegally sold driver and location information to data brokers. That agreement requires GM to limit the driving data it collects and to obtain express consent from drivers before collecting their information.
Ford is presenting the pledge as a way to stand out in an industry that has faced criticism over data practices. Mozilla recently labeled modern connected cars the worst category of products for privacy it has ever reviewed. The nonprofit found that 92 percent of the automakers it reviewed give drivers little if any control over their personal data, and that 84 percent share user data with outside parties.
Ford said it surveyed more than 1,000 US customers, including both Ford owners and non-Ford owners, and found that privacy is a top concern for them. More than half of respondents said they understand that some data sharing is acceptable. Forty-one percent said they were extremely or very concerned about data privacy in the auto industry, a lower share than for other groups such as social media companies, the government and financial institutions.
Ford's commitment carries potential legal weight in the US. The Federal Trade Commission bars companies from misleading the public with deceptive claims. If Ford breaks a public promise not to sell driving data to brokers, the FTC and state attorneys general can sue, require the company to sign legally binding agreements to fix the problem and impose substantial fines.
More technology news from TechManNews.
