Driver beware - big brother is watching you
Technology helps monitor drivers for all kinds of activity
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JoeUser Forums
JoeUser Forums
A new article, (as opposed to this old article: Privacy Experts Shun Black Boxes) reminds me yet again that anyone that is using our roads best be aware that big brother is watching you, perhaps in many more ways than you are aware.
I was discussing the above linked article with friends, and for the most part, their responses were something along the lines of you are being paranoid, don't worry about it, down to a typical "don't do anything to cause concern and you have nothing to worry about."
That seems fine, but like many, I'm known to sometimes exercise what some localities consider a lead foot. I try hard not to be reckless, no weaving in and out of traffic, no tailgating, leaving enough room (but not too much) for others to be able to manuever around me, etc. But I do admittedly occassionally drive faster than the posted limits. In the greater D.C. area, not doing so would be considered reckless. You either drive to keep up with traffic and not cause a many mile traffic backup behind you, or you could find yourself run off the road (or never getting on it) because some jerk won't let you merge in, or that same jerk tries to cause you to crash or get off their roads.
Leadfooters need to be aware that insurers (among others) are able to make use of black box type devices to monitor your vehicle. Whether you know it or not, if you are driving a fairly recent vehicle (last 10 years, give or take), your vehicle is monitoring data on your driving habits. Depending upon the vehicle and the computers inside of it, more data may be available than you would expect. And as the article below tell us, that data, and more, may be available to the legal system, where it can and will apparently be used against you in the court of law.
It may be too late to stop the use of this data -- some rental car companies have reportedly used the data, as have insurers, and now the legal system itself -- or we may be able to put the genie back in the bottle by demanding laws that protect our rights to privacy in this area, but if things don't change, the slippery slope will continue to be traversed in the wrong directions.
Article below is linked (headline). Please visit the original source for more information and complete article.
Mich. County Uses Black Boxes for Drivers
Aug 26, 2:34 PM (ET)
NOVI, Mich. (AP) - A judge in Oakland County is using black box technology to keep an eye on drivers who repeatedly run afoul of the law. The boxes have been installed in the vehicles of 14 defendants since 52-1 District Court Judge Brian MacKenzie created the program last year.
They track a vehicle's speed and other actions, such as acceleration rate and whether a driver slams the brakes or makes sharp turns.
The black box requirement is part of a program called Driver Rehabilitation Incorporating Vehicular Education - or DRIVE - and applies only to drivers who have a license and are on probation. Others in the program are required to attend group therapy, take driver training or perform community service.
"The idea is to come up with a sentence that makes the individuals coming into the program better drivers, safer drivers, improving the safety of everyone around," MacKenzie told The Detroit News for a Friday story. "And it seems to work."
... more at linked article
Again, driver beware. Big brother is watching. If not by an add-on black box, then by the computers that are already in your vehicles. Think before you get behind the wheel and turn the key.
I was discussing the above linked article with friends, and for the most part, their responses were something along the lines of you are being paranoid, don't worry about it, down to a typical "don't do anything to cause concern and you have nothing to worry about."
That seems fine, but like many, I'm known to sometimes exercise what some localities consider a lead foot. I try hard not to be reckless, no weaving in and out of traffic, no tailgating, leaving enough room (but not too much) for others to be able to manuever around me, etc. But I do admittedly occassionally drive faster than the posted limits. In the greater D.C. area, not doing so would be considered reckless. You either drive to keep up with traffic and not cause a many mile traffic backup behind you, or you could find yourself run off the road (or never getting on it) because some jerk won't let you merge in, or that same jerk tries to cause you to crash or get off their roads.
Leadfooters need to be aware that insurers (among others) are able to make use of black box type devices to monitor your vehicle. Whether you know it or not, if you are driving a fairly recent vehicle (last 10 years, give or take), your vehicle is monitoring data on your driving habits. Depending upon the vehicle and the computers inside of it, more data may be available than you would expect. And as the article below tell us, that data, and more, may be available to the legal system, where it can and will apparently be used against you in the court of law.
It may be too late to stop the use of this data -- some rental car companies have reportedly used the data, as have insurers, and now the legal system itself -- or we may be able to put the genie back in the bottle by demanding laws that protect our rights to privacy in this area, but if things don't change, the slippery slope will continue to be traversed in the wrong directions.
Article below is linked (headline). Please visit the original source for more information and complete article.
Mich. County Uses Black Boxes for Drivers
Aug 26, 2:34 PM (ET)
NOVI, Mich. (AP) - A judge in Oakland County is using black box technology to keep an eye on drivers who repeatedly run afoul of the law. The boxes have been installed in the vehicles of 14 defendants since 52-1 District Court Judge Brian MacKenzie created the program last year.
They track a vehicle's speed and other actions, such as acceleration rate and whether a driver slams the brakes or makes sharp turns.
The black box requirement is part of a program called Driver Rehabilitation Incorporating Vehicular Education - or DRIVE - and applies only to drivers who have a license and are on probation. Others in the program are required to attend group therapy, take driver training or perform community service.
"The idea is to come up with a sentence that makes the individuals coming into the program better drivers, safer drivers, improving the safety of everyone around," MacKenzie told The Detroit News for a Friday story. "And it seems to work."
... more at linked article
Again, driver beware. Big brother is watching. If not by an add-on black box, then by the computers that are already in your vehicles. Think before you get behind the wheel and turn the key.
