Carmakers’ shady data sharing takes spotlight in GM connected car scandal

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Few Ars readers will have been surprised by the news from last week concerning General Motors’ connected cars. As The New York Times reported, some owners of vehicles made by General Motors have been having a hard time getting car insurance. The reason? They unwittingly agreed to share their driving data with a third party. Now, at least one driver is suing. If more follow suit, this could be the push the industry needs to do better.

The heart of the problem is one of GM’s OnStar connected-car services, called Smart Driver. We’ve tested it out in the past—it monitors things like how fast you drive, how hard you accelerate and brake, how often you drive at night, and your fuel economy, then uses that data to generate a numerical score from 0 to 100, with a higher number indicating that you’re a safer driver.

These kinds of services can be useful—most people think they’re great drivers until they start getting independent feedback. And the data that Smart Driver collects really can help you drive more economically and with less risk. But as I noted at the time, I was glad my insurance rates weren’t at risk via data sharing with an insurer.