Important Report Montana: Your Vehicle Knows Too Much About You

When it comes to personal information and data, it is important to try and be safe. In Montana trying to protect personal information from getting in the wrong hands has been a priority for our legislature and our Governor . Attorney General Austin Knudsen spoke about the TikTok ban here in Montana, so has Governor Greg Gianforte. Montana made international news regarding the ban on TikTok, which is scheduled to go into effect January 1, 2024. There is another place where your data is being used that you may not even be aware of, and have no or little control over.

Surprising Product That is "Worst Product" for Privacy

Surprisingly it isn't social media, your smart phone, or even your computer, it is your vehicle. According to a report from Mozilla, cars are the worst category they have ever reviewed for a person's privacy.

New Vehicle Technology Captures Data

The newer the vehicles, the more technology that is included and you may not be aware of everything that comes along with that. Mozilla researched 25 different car brands and found that every one should include a "Privacy Not Included" label. The reviews found that all 25 of the vehicle manufacturers collect user data.

Get our free mobile app

Vehicles Brands That Are Popular In Montana

They also found that not only do the vehicle manufacturers collect personal data, 84% of them either share or sell your data and 92% of the manufacturers don't give buyers any control over their personal data.

This is alarming and may be surprising to some people. Some of the vehicle brands they researched include some very popular vehicles in Montana:

• Jeep
• Subaru
• Dodge
• Ford
• Toyota
• Honda
• Chevrolet
• GMC

While Montana is looking at banning TikTok, maybe our lawmakers should take a hard look at vehicle manufacturers too.

There is Some Good News For Montana Drivers

The good news for Montana is that we keep our vehicles longer than most states. Maybe it is a good thing that we have older vehicles on our roads, sometimes less technology is a good thing, at least when it comes to personal data.