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Satans Mark/Cashless Title: OnStar Tracks Your Car Even When You Cancel Service Navigation-and-emergency-services company OnStar is notifying its six million account holders that it will keep a complete accounting of the speed and location of OnStar-equipped vehicles, even for drivers who discontinue monthly service. OnStar began e-mailing customers Monday about its update to the privacy policy, which grants OnStar the right to sell that GPS-derived data in an anonymized format. Adam Denison, a spokesman for the General Motors subsidiary, said OnStar does not currently sell customer data, but it reserves that right. He said both the new and old privacy policies allow OnStar to chronicle a vehicle’s every movement and its speed, though it’s not clear where that’s stated in the old policy. “What’s changed [is that if] you want to cancel your OnStar service, we are going to maintain a two-way connection to your vehicle unless the customer says otherwise,” Denison said in a telephone interview. The connection will continue, he said, to make it “easier to re-enroll” in the program, which charges plans from $19 to $29 monthly for help with navigation and emergencies. The privacy changes take effect in December, Denison said, adding that the policy reinforces the company’s right to sell anonymized data. “We hear from organizations periodically requesting our information,” he said. He said an example of how the data might be used would be for the Michigan Department of Transportation “to get a feel for traffic usage on a specific section of freeway.” The policy also allows the data to be used for marketing purposes by OnStar and vehicle manufacturers. Collecting location and speed data via GPS might also create a treasure trove of data that could be used in criminal and civil cases. One could also imagine an eager police chief acquiring the data to issue speeding tickets en masse. Jonathan Zdziarski, an Ohio forensics scientist, blogged about the new terms Tuesday. In a telephone interview, he said he was canceling his service and making sure he was being disconnected from OnStar’s network. He said the new privacy policy goes too far. “They added a bullet point allowing them to collect any data for any purpose,” he said. Post Comment Private Reply Ignore Thread Top • Page Up • Full Thread • Page Down • Bottom/Latest Begin Trace Mode for Comment # 3. And lookie here. Ford calls the pigs on you if you get in a wreck and you have their big brother system in your vehicle. Can you cut this stuff out with a saws all or do you just smash it with a hammer?
http://www.wired.com/autopia/2009/05/ford-takes-on-onstar-with-911-assist/ Ford Takes on OnStar With 911 Assist * By Keith Barry Email Author * * May 26, 2009 | * 5:00 am | * Categories: Miscellaneous * * 10lincolnmkz_46Ford has got GM’s OnStar service in their sights after introducing a software upgrade to the Ford-Microsoft Sync system that automatically calls 911 in the event of a crash. Dubbed 911 Assist, the program was first announced in 2008 but is now appearing on brand new Ford vehicles equipped with Sync. The program uses a Bluetooth-enabled phone to automatically dial 911 after an airbag deployment or fuel shutoff. Should the driver be unable to communicate, 911 Assist automatically plays a recorded message that tells the emergency operator a crash has occured. While it sounds like an efficient system, it’s missing a few key ingredients of OnStar such as GPS location and advanced crash recognition. We also doubt the commercials could be as dramatic as OnStar’s, whose crash-scene replays are the stuff of nightmares. Ford is positioning 911 Assist as a direct competitor to OnStar and similar systems. It’s not a bad option for those who would rather a Lincoln than a Cadillac, don’t want to pay the $18.95 monthly fee for OnStar service, or are afraid of potential privacy intrusions. “Unlike other crash notification services, 911 Assist does not require the customer to sign up and pay for a costly monthly service subscription,” reads one Ford press release. In addition, Ford touts Sync’s direct connection with 911 and “not a third party call center, as with other competitive systems.” While it sounds appealing, 911 Assist has some flaws compared to its closest competition, the most glaring of which is the lack of GPS technology. If your phone doesn’t have built-in GPS, emergency responders will have to rely on the not-always-accurate strategy of cell phone signal triangulation to locate your Mercury Milan and the tree it’s wrapped around. With 911 Assist, you’re also out of luck if the airbags don’t go off or if the fuel shutoff doesn’t work. OnStar’s Advanced Automatic Crash Response, for example, can tell when any crash has occured. While all 2010 Ford vehicles will offer Sync as an option, not all existing Sync-equipped Fords have 911 Assist. Ford says that owners of any 2008 or early-2009 vehicle without the 911 Assist should be eligible for an upgrade, though installation fees may apply.
#2. To: A K A Stone (#1) Far as i know onstar needs its little sharkfin cell ant to work. Just snap it off at the base. Disabled.
#3. To: e_type_jag (#2) Thanks for the info. Who knows I may need that info someday.
Replies to Comment # 3. I hope you don't use a cellular phone.
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