Big Brother Is Watching

[PJS57]

This thread is having me wish I had read up on things sooner. Holy cow, thought I opted out of this but apparently not.

Last time I drove the car was to & from a street night at the local drag strip. Guess it had a problem with that thinking I'm an awful driver (yes I know my 60' times were atrocious but gimmie a break it was my first time at the strip with it!).

Not sure whether to laugh or cry at this.

[90503]

Originally Posted by PJS57

This thread is having me wish I had read up on things sooner. Holy cow, thought I opted out of this but apparently not.

Last time I drove the car was to & from a street night at the local drag strip. Guess it had a problem with that thinking I'm an awful driver (yes I know my 60' times were atrocious but gimmie a break it was my first time at the strip with it!).

Not sure whether to laugh or cry at this.

That is a thing of beauty...lol...sorry to laugh, but that is a perfect example of how insidious this On-Star has become. No wonder they offer a free 30 day trial period....lol

As far back as 2011 when I got mine all the critics of On-Star were laughed at as tin-foil hat wearers and re-assured that no-way On-Star would never do anything without your consent. GM would protect your privacy, etc., etc.

On-Star has grown to a truly Orwellian monstrosity that refuses to be reeled in. They have the technology to get data and will go down screaming before they give it up. Cancel, opt out, get a voice confirmation of stoppage are all well and fine things they tell you, but is it really true? We have no way of knowing other than taking the word of the same entity that foisted it on you behind your back in the first place.

Likely they are still collecting all the data no matter what, just in case you change your mind and "opt" back in, and they'll tell you it's for your convenience. Just like the internet, nothing ever truly is deleted or goes away for good. Good luck to us all. Big Brother is indeed watching.

[Theroider]

Wow, this is quite scary. I just unenrolled my Camaro and Blackwing from the “helpful” Smart Driver programs. Not sure why this is considered helpful for the user — it only benefits the companies involved.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Matt1LE]

If memory serves me correctly... I thought State Farm jumped on board with all this ESG nonsense this year. I guess they're using your driving as part of your ESG score.



Makes sense... in an evil biblical end times way....

[Devstrike]

USAA seems to not be involved in this yet just had a policy renewal no increases and I do enjoy those spirited drives on the twisties.

[CHASLT1]

Originally Posted by Mark R

All electric cars are externally controllable, connected, etc. A tyrant's dream.

At least with my EV i never had a wish to go fast. Without the sound the fun was never there. It was snappy at red lights to around 60mph. I am always doing short WOT Burst with my C6. One day all Ins comps may force us to have a tracking device.

[Palutz]

Originally Posted by CHASLT1

At least with my EV i never had a wish to go fast. Without the sound the fun was never there. .

That is depressing to read. Just slowly dying a sad death and you will love it is the EV model. I don’t even want to imagine the kinds of trackers and controls a company has over an EV. If it can be updated remotely to make more power with a touch of a button what else can they control?

[jamala00]

Isn't this pretty much par for the course these days? You use a smartphone you are being tracked and data collected on you. You use a computer, you are being tracked and data collected on you. You use a CC and all your shopping habbits are tracked. Has anyone actually been contacted by their insurance company and told their premiums are going up due to their driving habbits?

I can only imagine how much info a Tesla tracks about you vs OnStar.

[LT1gen6]

There are 2 info sharing entities within GM orgs. Onstar, as discussed here, and also GM Financial. The latter's privacy sharing policy lists insurance companies as an opt-out choice.

[fj5gtx]

Originally Posted by Palutz

I just unenrolled through the Chevy app. It said I was enrolled in the Driver tracking bs on 8/11/22 … I didn’t pick up the car until the next day so I wasn’t even asked if I wanted to be tracked.

Mine was enrolled too, I don't remember seeing anything pertaining to smart driver... dealer must have provide that dis-service!

[laynlo15]

Originally Posted by IndyPaceCar

I apologize if this topic has already been discussed. I tried searching the forum, but the search feature was not functioning. If it has been discussed, please provide links to the discussion pages.

Just received my insurance renewal notices for my 2021 1SS. It showed a 25% premium increase, and mentioned that premiums are based on a number of factors, including personal data in a report provided to the insurance company by a company called LexisNexis. It also mentioned that you can request a copy of this report from LexisNexis, which I did, and they mailed me a letter containing a website and password to be used in viewing , and/or downloading/printing the 150+ page report. It contains information such as credit history, residence addresses, etc.

I was quite surprised to find that it also contained data provided by General Motors Holding in Detroit pertaining to my driving practices. There were records of 175 trips which included data categories for each trip :
Start Date, Start Time, End Date, End Time, Acceleration Events, Hard Brake Events, High Speed Events, Distance, and VIN. I was aware that various insurance companies offer incentives if you install a monitoring device which captures this data, but had no idea that GM was collecting this data, and providing to third parties. I called my insurance agent to ask if this data may have been a factor in the 25% increase in my premium; he said that the insurance company does not reveal to him how much each of the 40 or so factors influences the premiums, and also that he was totally unaware that GM was providing this data.

I did not extend the use of OnStar or the My Chevy app once the free introductory periods expired, but from what I’ve read, GM still collects this information and provides it, and the ability to collect it is somehow tied to the vehicle’s infotainment and/or Bluetooth features. I tried googling to see if there are ways to disable this, and was unable to come across any information that might be helpful.

Does anybody have any comments on this issue ? Does anybody know how to prevent GM from gathering this data (short of removing the infotainment and Bluetooth features from the vehicle). ?

Thanks

Did you or anyone in your family have an accident or get a ticket prior to this collection of your data? It seems that something may have triggered this collection. Maybe I'm wrong

[IndyPaceCar]

Originally Posted by laynlo15

Did you or anyone in your family have an accident or get a ticket prior to this collection of your data? It seems that something may have triggered this collection. Maybe I'm wrong

No, no accidents or tickets in at least the last several years for me or anyone in my family

[FarmerFran]

Originally Posted by jamala00

I can only imagine how much info a Tesla tracks about you vs OnStar.

I can tell you, literally all of it, including a lot of video

[AmericanMike]

Originally Posted by IndyPaceCar

Just spoke with OnStar at 1.888.466.7827 . They advised that even though I did not continue with the services after the 30 day free trial expired, that vehicle operation data was still being collected. This was obviously being provided to third parties, like insurance companies. I requested that they cease providing that information immediately, and was told that they will cease doing that, effective today. The person I spoke to did not have English as their first language and the connection was not all that good, so it was not clear to me if they will stop collecting the data, or just stop providing it to others. I suspect the latter. Will be checking again when my insurance policy is up for next renewal.

Thanks to ZPirate, ctrlz, and everybody else for their comments, information, and suggestions.

Good luck to us all !

I just completed an online request from LexisNexis to see my data they have on me! We'll see if OnStar is ratting me out.