Читать книгу THE LIFEBOAT STRATEGY - Mark Nestmann - Страница 27

When you start your car, you might not think of the privacy implications. But many vehicles now contain global positioning system (GPS) technology that can pinpoint your location, wherever you travel.

GPS, originally conceived for the U.S. military, has evolved into a multi-billion-dollar industry. General Motors’ OnStar system is now installed in millions of vehicles. Police and government agencies can track any of these vehicles – and U.S. courts, with few exceptions,59 have generally ruled that investigators don’t need a warrant.60 Courts have also ruled that the FBI and other police agencies can even use these factory-installed tracking systems to eavesdrop on passengers.61 If your vehicle doesn’t have such a system installed, police in many states can hide one in it, without obtaining a warrant. Your location can then be tracked wherever you drive.62

Car rental companies use GPS devices to pinpoint a driver’s location and speed. The companies can set boundaries for their vehicles, so they know when cars are taken across state or provincial borders. The system can even deactivate a vehicle’s ignition if it’s been stolen, driven too fast, or operated in a location prohibited by the rental contract.

Another unusual use of GPS involves insurance companies who reward drivers that don’t use their cars often with lower rates. Naturally, the insurance companies want proof that the cars aren’t being driven. Rather than inspect the odometers, the high-tech solution is to track the car by GPS.63

GPS isn’t the only threat to privacy in your car. “Black box” surveillance systems have been installed in new automobiles manufactured in the United States since 1994. Among other information, the black box records a vehicle’s speed, acceleration, etc. in the same manner as the boxes placed in commercial airliners. In an accident, records retrieved from the box can determine if the vehicle was operated unsafely.64

Don’t forget automatic toll collection systems like E-Z Pass. Subscribers open prepaid accounts, and then receive special tags for their cars’ windshields. When a car with one of these tags cruises through a suitably equipped toll plaza, the toll is automatically debited. The E-Z Pass system transponders record the time and location each time a toll is collected. Police already use information recorded by E-Z Pass and similar systems in investigations. Increasingly, the records are also available in civil litigation.65

Technology companies have big plans for more comprehensive vehicle surveillance systems. Manufacturers of red light and speed camera systems have proposed integrating “national security” features into these devices. The new technology would maintain video records of passing motorists along with automatic identification of their license plate numbers. Once such systems are in widespread use, a police officer could simply type in your license plate number to reveal your vehicle’s location, 24 hours/day.

Similar technology already exists in the United Kingdom, where the national Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) system tracks nearly 14 million vehicles daily through police cameras and closed circuit television systems. As you drive between major cities and (especially) into a major metropolitan area, your license plate is scanned and your identity matched against various U.K. databases. The system also photographs all passengers in the vehicles and stores the images for up to two years in a massive database.66