“We need urgent legislation for connected vehicles, which establishes fundamental principles for the protection of consumers such as freedom of choice, data protection and security, fair competition and innovation”: this request that the FIA (Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile) has just done to the European Commission because according to their study 91% of consumers believe they own the data generated by their car, and 85% say they have no control over them.
To give more strength to this request, the FIA has also launched a campaign – “My car my data“(” My car, my data “- because the problem of privacy at the wheel is becoming enormous. Yes, because modern cars record everything. And not just the data related to movement (speed, position, maintenance, mileage, levels oil …) but also those on the driver’s behavior, such as driving style or distances traveled, and even personal details, such as name, contact details and financial data shared with the vehicle’s operating system.
What to do? According to the FIA, there would be a solution: that is to adopt the S-OTP – Secure On-board Telematics Platform – as an ideal platform for the benefit of consumers and society in general. The S-OTP platform guarantees, in fact, true freedom of choice for the consumer, effective competition and business freedom, in a safe and technologically neutral context. Furthermore, the S-OTP would ensure state-of-the-art IT security and a correct distribution of responsibilities.
“Our study – explains Laurianne Krid, Director General of the FIA Region I – confirms, once again, that, when it comes to data generated while driving a vehicle, European citizens do not have enough power. It is urgent to adopt a solid regulatory framework that allows equitable access to data, based on the informed consent of consumers “. “We ask the Commission – concluded Krid – to integrate, as soon as possible, the transversal legislation with the long-awaited sector-specific legislation. There is more and more evidence that the proprietary models proposed by the manufacturers do not generate the innovation that Europeans need to embrace connectivity ”.
In short, the theme is on the table. And something could happen shortly because on 23 February the European Commission should adopt a proposal for ‘Data Act‘to facilitate access and use of data. A choice made even more important because consumers today know nothing: what types of data their car generates, for what purposes and with whom it will be shared. Anything. And obviously little knowledge of vehicle data by consumers and the potential misuse of that information poses a threat to cybersecurity and consumer protection principles under the General Data Protection Regulation.
In short, specific legislation is needed in the automotive sector since the number of connected vehicles is destined to grow enormously. Suffice it to say that the tightening of control over data flows by manufacturers could cause an overall loss of 65 billion euros per year for independent service providers and consumers between now and 2030.