Your Driverless Cab Is Spying on You
Self-driving cars from Waymo, Zoox, and Tesla are studded with cameras and sensors. Some of them are pointing at riders.
A recent incident involving a gun being shot with water-filled Orbeez in a Waymo driverless taxi has highlighted the surveillance capabilities of the company's vehicles. Waymo's cars are equipped with cameras that can detect firearms and alert the company. Inside the self-driving cars, there are cameras that help ensure rider safety and enforce rules.
Waymo has used these cabin cameras to verify passengers' ages and enforce other policies. While the company claims that footage is used for innocuous reasons like cleanliness checks and lost item detection, privacy policies suggest broader uses, including improving products and services. Experts warn that few clear rules govern this surveillance in the US, and riders must trust companies to handle their information responsibly.
The lack of robust regulations leaves passengers vulnerable, as they are left to assume that their privacy may be compromised without their knowledge. Some experts suggest that riders should act as if they are being watched, even when alone in the vehicle.
Written by urgent.news from Wired's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
