General Motors’ OnStar has been around since the late 1990s, but the trailblazing connected services system has had the automaker tied up in legal trouble in recent years. Last year, a customer sued GM for allegedly violating his privacy rights by selling his data. Now, the Nebraska Attorney General’s office is suing the automaker and OnStar, alleging they connected, processed, and sold drivers’ data in the state without their consent or even knowledge of the activity.
Nebraska State Attorney General Mike Hilgers said GM and OnStar used hidden telematics systems in vehicles to collect driving data, such as seatbelt use, speed, driving habits, and even location. The suit alleges that the data was then sold to third parties who used it to create driving scores for individuals.
You can see where this is going. Insurance companies ended up with the scores, which the suit says were used to set rates, deny coverage, and cancel policies. Drivers were never notified of the data collection or that it was being used to jack up their insurance rates.
The suit also alleges that GM incentivized dealership employees to enroll customers in the tracking services without properly disclosing the fine print. Some people were also reportedly enrolled without consent.
[Images: General Motors, GMC]
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