this post was submitted on 11 Mar 2024
778 points (98.9% liked)

Privacy

31975 readers
241 users here now

A place to discuss privacy and freedom in the digital world.

Privacy has become a very important issue in modern society, with companies and governments constantly abusing their power, more and more people are waking up to the importance of digital privacy.

In this community everyone is welcome to post links and discuss topics related to privacy.

Some Rules

Related communities

Chat rooms

much thanks to @gary_host_laptop for the logo design :)

founded 5 years ago
MODERATORS
 

Kenn Dahl says he has always been a careful driver. The owner of a software company near Seattle, he drives a leased Chevrolet Bolt. He’s never been responsible for an accident.

So Mr. Dahl, 65, was surprised in 2022 when the cost of his car insurance jumped by 21 percent. Quotes from other insurance companies were also high. One insurance agent told him his LexisNexis report was a factor.

LexisNexis is a New York-based global data broker with a “Risk Solutions” division that caters to the auto insurance industry and has traditionally kept tabs on car accidents and tickets. Upon Mr. Dahl’s request, LexisNexis sent him a 258-page “consumer disclosure report,” which it must provide per the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

What it contained stunned him: more than 130 pages detailing each time he or his wife had driven the Bolt over the previous six months. It included the dates of 640 trips, their start and end times, the distance driven and an accounting of any speeding, hard braking or sharp accelerations. The only thing it didn’t have is where they had driven the car.

On a Thursday morning in June for example, the car had been driven 7.33 miles in 18 minutes; there had been two rapid accelerations and two incidents of hard braking.

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] [email protected] 9 points 8 months ago (3 children)

Am I the only one who doesn't find this surprising. All these big car companies making drivable spyware and who would probably want that data? Insurance companies. This is why my first car I'm gonna tear out the modem.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 8 months ago

Surprising? Hell no. Infuriating? Fuck yes. Your accident records should speak for themselves, not some bullshit algorithms calculating if yOu AcCelLerATeD ToO fASt or not. Get the fuck outta here with that baby shit.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 8 months ago

I'm not surprised it happened, but a little surprised how quickly it happened. Most insurance companies still offer a plan where you voluntarily plug in a tracker to monitor your driving in exchange for lower rates if you're a good driver, so it's extra fucked that they're doing the same thing to presumably everyone with an internet connected car without even telling them upfront, let alone getting consent.