Car data is personal data, says report

Early results from a new study commissioned by FIA Region I indicates that most car data can be linked to a user and therefore should be treated as personal data.
June 7, 2017 Read time: 2 mins

Early results from a new study commissioned by 8054 FIA Region I indicates that most car data can be linked to a user and therefore should be treated as personal data. The study examined how existing and upcoming EU legislation on data protection and liability could apply to vehicle data. It clearly dismisses the attempts to categorise data according to its technical or non-technical nature, as currently proposed by vehicle manufacturers. Data does not automatically lose relevance in terms of privacy because of its technical nature. For instance, technical information regarding a low oil gauge of a specific vehicle is linked to an identifiable customer, it directly relates to this person.

The General Data Protection Regulation, expected to come into force from May 2018, introduces the concept of data portability, intended to allow users to transfer their personal data to a third party upon request. This provision was drafted to ensure competition. However, data protection legislation alone may not be sufficient to ensure competition as there remain concerns over the latency and quality of the data to be provided.

"This study shows, without ambiguity, that most of the data generated by car users should be treated as personal data. It dismisses claims that exclusive access could be granted to vehicle manufacturers based on the nature of the data or liability obligations. While data protection legislation will provide some rights to users, it cannot replace sound technical and competition legislation to guarantee free choice and innovation." said Laurianne Krid, director general of FIA Region I.

The study also explores whether liability obligations grant a right to access data to manufacturers. Neither the product liability directive nor the produce safety directive obliges manufacturers to permanently monitor data once the vehicles are on the road. If such processing of data was needed, it must be based on consumer consent. Data should also be equally shared with component manufacturers.

The full study will be published in the coming weeks.

For more information on companies in this article

FIA

Related Content

  • Report highlights community impact of new mobility options
    March 29, 2018
    Local authorities and communities must understand the impacts of the new mobility options and regulate to get the transport systems they want, according to a new report. Colin Sowman takes a look. Outside of the big cities plagued with congestion, the existing transportation system(s) often cope adequately, and the ongoing workload (maintenance, safety…) is more than enough to keep local transport authorities busy. Is it, therefore, a good use of public service employees’ time to keep abreast of the raft
    Read More
  • Report highlights community impact of new mobility options
    March 29, 2018
    Local authorities and communities must understand the impacts of the new mobility options and regulate to get the transport systems they want, according to a new report. Colin Sowman takes a look. Outside of the big cities plagued with congestion, the existing transportation system(s) often cope adequately, and the ongoing workload (maintenance, safety…) is more than enough to keep local transport authorities busy. Is it, therefore, a good use of public service employees’ time to keep abreast of the raft
    Read More
  • Pricing practise for HOT lane operation
    May 11, 2017
    Timothy Compston weighs up the critical elements that keep the wheels of dynamic pricing schemes turning in today's high-occupancy toll (HOT) lanes. In the drive towards smarter tolling it is perhaps not surprising that sophisticated pricing algorithms are being rolled out to better reflect supply and demand on the roadway. This is the case with high-occupancy toll (HOT) lanes which a growing number of DoTs are seeing as a way of smoothing the operation of their existing, and planned, freeway infrastructure
    Read More
  • Ignoring deadly defects in autonomous cars serves no one, say auto safety advocates
    July 29, 2016
    The US Center for Auto Safety, Consumer Watchdog and former National Highway Traffic Administration (NHTSA) administrator Joan Claybrook have told NHTSA administrator Mark Rosekind that "you inexcusably are rushing full speed ahead" to promote the deployment of self-driving robot car technology instead of developing adequate safety standards "crucial to ensuring imperfect technologies do not kill people by being introduced into vehicles before the technology matures." In a letter to Rosekind in response
    Read More

Highlighted Content