From The Texas Newsroom:
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sued General Motors on Tuesday, alleging the manufacturing giant illegally collected and sold private driver information without consent.
Paxton said that GM’s “false, deceptive, and misleading business practices” affected more than 1.8 million Texans. The office said in a statement that technology installed in GM vehicles beginning in 2015 collected, analyzed and recorded information about each time a person used the vehicle. That information was then sold to private companies, including insurance companies.
“Millions of American drivers wanted to buy a car, not a comprehensive surveillance system that unlawfully records information about every drive they take and sells their data to any company willing to pay for it,” Paxton said in a statement.
The lawsuit, filed in state district court in Montgomery County, states that data was collected from more than 14 million vehicles and the information collected includes date, start and end times, speed, distance driven and seatbelt status.
In a statement to Reuters, GM officials said that the company is reviewing the complaint and has been in discussions with Paxton’s office.
“We share the desire to protect consumers’ privacy,” the statement adds.
Paxton said the lawsuit was filed after his office opened an investigation into several car manufacturers earlier this year. Paxton said in June that the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices – Consumer Protection Act grants the office the authority to “investigate false, misleading, or deceptive acts or practices.”
The state of Texas is seeking a jury trial and for the court to impose civil penalties against GM. It is also asking the court to order that all collected information be destroyed.
The manufacturer currently operates 18 facilities in Texas, according to GM’s website. They include assembly, battery and GPS manufacturing facilities, as well as sales and marketing offices.
