California privacy regulator reviewing data collected by smart vehicles

California’s privacy regulator said Monday it will be reviewing the data privacy practices of connected car manufacturers.  

Connected cars offer drivers smart features including web-based entertainment, location sharing, cameras and smartphone integration. In its announcement Monday, the California Privacy Protection Agency (CPAA) said in order to provide these features, the vehicles “often automatically gather consumers’ locations, personal preferences, and details about their daily lives.”  

Ashkan Soltani, the CPAA’s executive director, said its enforcement division is inquiring into whether connected car companies are “complying with California law when they collect and use consumers’ data.”  

“Modern vehicles are effectively connected computers. They’re able to collect a wealth of information via built-in apps, sensors, and cameras, which can monitor people inside and near the vehicle,” Soltani said in a press release.

The probe is being done under the comprehensive data privacy law called the California Consumer Privacy Act, which requires major firms to disclose the personal information collected from consumers and what is being done with it. That law was passed in 2018 and was expanded upon in 2020.

The legislation grants Californians privacy rights such as the right to know the personal information collected about them by businesses, the right to delete that information and the right to stop its sale or sharing.