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Automakers and Crash Data Recorders

Posted by michael on from the technology-that-drops-a-dime-on-you dept.

The New York Times has a decent story about automakers not wanting to standardize car data recorders. There are a couple of nuances which the reporter mostly misses. The automakers want to avoid standardization because they can then sell access to the proprietary data format (NYT does cover this, but ignores the profit motive). The story mentions privacy issues but dismisses them as solved, yet notes that there are no privacy protections whatsoever for this data, and you can expect it to be used against you in any incident (and perhaps other times: wait until service under your warranty is refused because your car reported your bad driving habits to the dealer). That's not "solved" in my book (and I think the automakers realize that selling cars which report on their owners might backfire). Speculation about ambulance crews using crash data is just hype - no ambulance is equipped to do that, nor would I want an EMT to spend time decoding the crash data instead of, say, saving my life. The article repeatedly suggests that crash data would be used to enhance safety, without ever specifying how that is supposed to occur.

4 of 357 comments (clear)

  1. Re:First post! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Troll

    you suck, get a life

  2. Please stop quoting NYT articles by Vlijmen+Fileer · · Score: -1, Troll

    Could we all please stop quoting NYT articles? They cannot be read without submitting to the stupidity of "subscription". It's like citing news from a newspaper people are not subscribed to. There's plenty of other, and non-nagging, information sources available, why not use them?

    1. Re:Please stop quoting NYT articles by RN · · Score: -1, Troll
      but remember, the slashdot editors don't link to registration required stories, but for the almighty great New York Times. Apparently, registration is evil, but they'll make an exception for such awesome fine stories.

      gotta love the hypocrisy in all this.

  3. Re:Typical NYTimes idiots by nathanh · · Score: 1, Troll
    I am sick and tired of every Tom, Jack and New York Times reporter "advising" auto-manufacturers how to develop cars. Just shut the fuck up. Perhaps these retards don't realize, but modern automoblies are incredible feats of engineering. Thousands of components work together to ensure that some epsilon minus moron can reach his/her NYTimes office and conjure idiotic articles.

    I am sick and tired of every Tom, Jack and Slashdot reader "advising" journalists how to write stories. Just shut the fuck up. Perhaps these retards don't realize, but modern stories are incredible feats of journalism. Thousands of writers work together to ensure that some epsilon minus moron can reach his/her Slashdot Submit button and conjure idiotic posts.