Would You Volunteer to Let Ford Track Your Driving Habits for Cash?
Ford is using its Big Data Drive to gather info in exchange for a small payout. But is this going a little too far?
Most people are well aware, and in some cases a little freaked out, by the extent to which companies go to collect data from us these days. That includes the world of automobiles, of course. These days, cars and trucks are smarter than ever, capable of tracking just about everything you do. And as we found out in a very interesting post over at our sister site Ford Truck Enthusiasts, automakers like Ford have a large vested interest in this valuable data.
Ford has launched its own Big Data Drive project, which pays owners a nominal fee in exchange for the right to monitor their driving habits. FTE member RenoHuskerDu found out about this program when he was actually offered a spot, but was understandably a little hesitant to participate. He then went to the forums to find out how others felt about it, and the responses he received were pretty darn interesting, to say the least.
“Ford wrote and offered me some trivial amount of money if I would consent to them monitoring my driving. I was not interested, and told them so. It’s kind of creepy. The funny thing is, the letter didn’t mention that I’d need to go to the dealer and get anything installed or turned on. I just needed to say OK. I tossed the letter and didn’t scan it. Has anybody here joined Ford’s Big Data program? Did they need to modify your truck or install a tracker? Or could our trucks be tracking us already?”
Interestingly, most members that chime in don’t seem to be too concerned about this data tracking. Heck, at least they’re paying you for it instead of just taking it, right? Most, like claf, feel like Ford isn’t doing anything malicious here, either. At least not on purpose.
“Could they be monitoring us? Yes, 100% absolutely they could be. Are they monitoring us? Yes, 100% likely there is some kind of telemetry coming back from the trucks to Ford. Do they think they are invading our privacy? No, 100% likely the executives at Ford are pretty sure they aren’t doing anything creepy. Are they doing something creepy anyway? I give it an 80% chance they are accidentally collecting too much data. They may not know they are doing it, it might be a software glitch or whatever. But I’ll call it way more than likely that they aren’t discarding private data like they think they are. I know from experience it’s insanely hard to do this properly.”
Member austinb1017 expounds upon this with a little more detail.
“Why do you think they are pushing Ford Pass and all new vehicles have a 4G modem? They can and are monitoring for marketing purposes. Dealers are then provided this information so they can contact you for an oil change, or to sell you a new vehicle. No privacy these days. They also monitor and know your preferences when shopping on Ford and dealer websites.”
So clearly, most everyone is aware of the data collection that’s going on. And for the most part, people seem to have accepted it. But we want to know what you think. Does this kind of “Big Brother” activity bother you? Or would you be totally fine with it, especially if you were getting paid? Head over here and let us know how you feel!
Photos: Ford Motor Company
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