A new study conducted by researchers at Northeastern University, in partnership with Consumer Reports, has found that modern vehicles equipped with connected car technology and their companion mobile apps frequently share extensive data with tech companies. The peer-reviewed study, set for publication this week, examined 21 late-model vehicles from 17 automakers and 30 companion apps.
The findings indicate that 19 of the 21 vehicles tested sent traffic to at least one third party. Additionally, seven of the 30 apps were found to provide sensitive data, including vehicle identification numbers (VINs), emails, phone numbers, and precise location, to third-party companies involved in tracking and advertising.
Researchers noted that pairing a companion app to a vehicle roughly doubled the exposure to advertising and tracking companies. This practice often involved multiple forms of information being sent to the same third party, which, according to the study, enables advertisers and data brokers to create detailed consumer profiles that can be difficult for individuals to manage.
The data is reportedly shared with companies such as Adobe, ContentSquare, Google, Microsoft, Meta, Snap, and Yahoo. When the findings were shared with manufacturers, all except Honda reportedly shifted blame, often towards consumers. Honda, however, responded by improving its data collection practices and instructed its vendor, Amplitude, to delete all geolocation data it had received.