Northeastern study highlights PII risk with vehicles that are ‘smartphones on wheels’

“Modern vehicles typically integrate a wide array of sensors, software systems, and always-on connectivity, effectively becoming ‘smartphones on wheels,'” states the research paper covering the study results.

Researchers found: Vehicles and companion apps contact numerous third-party domains, including advertisers and trackers.

Seven of 30 apps transmit personally identifiable information (PII) to third-party companies, resulting in allowing advertisers to build in-depth consumer profiles.

Pairing a companion app roughly doubled a vehicle’s exposure to advertising/tracking companies, on average, and in some cases added 20-plus new ones.

“The ongoing theme of all these responses was shifting the blame to the consumer,” the paper states.