Texas accuses General Motors of collecting and selling driver 'bad' habits

General Motors has been accused of collecting data about the 'bad' habits of drivers and selling it on to insurers, according to the state of Texas.

Texas accuses General Motors of collecting and selling driver 'bad' habits
Comment IconFacebook IconX IconReddit Icon
Tech and Science Editor
Published
1 minute & 30 seconds read time

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed a lawsuit against General Motors that alleges the company collected and sold drivers' data to insurance companies without their consent or knowledge.

Texas accuses General Motors of collecting and selling driver 'bad' habits 6556651

The new lawsuit alleges that in car models from 2015 and above, General Motors implemented data-collecting technology to monitor and collect drivers' data, particularly any "bad" habits. The lawsuit alleges General Motors collected data on more than 1.8 million Texas drivers and that these "bad" habits were events such as braking too fast, steering sharply into corners, not using seatbelts, and driving at night. At the moment, it remains unclear if the data was used by the insurers to increase the premiums for Texans.

More specifically, the data collection method involved crunching the numbers down to what was referred to as "driver score," which was an aggregation of data from any time a driver used their vehicle. The attorney general's office claimed General Motors "deceived" its Texan customers by encouraging them to enroll in opt-in programs such as OnStar Smart Driver. The lawsuit alleges General Motors deceived its customers by failing to inform them enrolling in such programs mean they agree to the collection and sale of their data.

"Our investigation revealed that General Motors has engaged in egregious business practices that violated Texans' privacy and broke the law. We will hold them accountable," said Attorney General Paxton. "Companies are using invasive technology to violate the rights of our citizens in unthinkable ways. 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."

Photo of the $10 -PlayStation Store Gift Card [Digital Code]
Best Deals: $10 -PlayStation Store Gift Card [Digital Code]
Country flag Today 7 days ago 30 days ago
$10 USD $10 USD
Buy
$10 USD $10 USD
Buy
$10 USD $10 USD
Buy
- $50 CAD
Buy
$10 USD $10 USD
Buy
$10 USD $10 USD
Buy
* Prices last scanned on 2/18/2025 at 12:21 pm CST - prices may not be accurate, click links above for the latest price. We may earn an affiliate commission from any sales.

Tech and Science Editor

Email IconX IconLinkedIn Icon

Jak joined the TweakTown team in 2017 and has since reviewed 100s of new tech products and kept us informed daily on the latest science, space, and artificial intelligence news. Jak's love for science, space, and technology, and, more specifically, PC gaming, began at 10 years old. It was the day his dad showed him how to play Age of Empires on an old Compaq PC. Ever since that day, Jak fell in love with games and the progression of the technology industry in all its forms.

Related Topics

Newsletter Subscription