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Car manufacturers break promise about sharing location data with police

The Official U.S. Senate website of Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon

April 30, 2024 Washington, D.C. – Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Sen. Edward Markey, D-Mass., requested the Federal Trade Commission investigate major automakers for breaking a pledge to protect their customers’ location data, in a letter to Chair Lina Khan sent today. The letter comes in response to an inquiry by Sen. Wyden’s office, which asked the association representing automakers how their members respond to law enforcement requests for location information collected from internet-connected cars and trucks. These responses directly contradict a public pledge by the auto industry, that the companies signed onto, committing to require that “requests or demand from governmental entities for geolocation information, must be in the form of a warrant or court order,” except in emergency situations or with the owner’s consent.

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