The California Attorney General announced that General Motors has agreed to pay $12.75 million to settle an investigation into the illegal sale of data on the driving habits of hundreds of thousands of California residents. The company is also restricted for five years from selling consumers’ personal data.
According to the investigation, from 2016 to 2024, GM collected information about vehicle locations, speeds and instances of sudden acceleration through the OnStar service. Together with the names, telephone numbers and home addresses of subscribers, this information was transmitted to two brokers, and subsequently went to insurers. State officials estimate GM’s revenue from such sales nationwide was about $20 million.
From 2016 to 2024, GM also tracked driving speeds and sudden acceleration incidents, state officials said. Media reports suggested that this data on driver behavior was shared with auto insurers, who used it to justify rate increases,” the Reuters report noted.
Notably, the company assured drivers that it would not sell their data, and did so without their knowledge or consent. “GM sold the data of California drivers despite numerous statements reassuring drivers that it would not do so,” said California Attorney General Rob Bonta.
GM said that the agreement reached as part of the trial concerns the Smart Driver program, the use of which was discontinued in 2024. The company promised to provide transparency in relations with customers regarding the use of their data.
The $12.75 million fine will go towards civil penalties. The agreement requires court approval. Prior to this, in January 2025, the US Federal Trade Commission had already ordered GM not to disclose or sell customer geolocation data and driving habits for five years, calling the company’s behavior “a blatant betrayal of consumer trust.”
Earlier, a dangerous malfunction was discovered in the cheapest Tesla Cybertruck.
