Practically no one is aware of the fact that the car registers all about the owners. Memorized data can be worthy of a very well-organized spy service. Why?

More or less, we are all aware that Google, as well as numerous social networks, simply stalks us and records everything about our behaviour, movement, habits… all for the sake of better-targeted advertising and making money. Powerful technology can do everything that was set before as a goal, and whether we know what is going on behind our backs, that is an “a million dollar” question. What we all need to be aware of (even if he has come to terms with it) is the fact that every step taken can be clearly followed, just like the action done. It is unpleasant and embarrassing, but… what can be done there. Social networks and all digital technology know more about each of us than we can even imagine, and in all this, they are wholeheartedly helped by the “devices” we use every day. From mobile phones and computers to cars.

One company that deals with digital forensics, for the test, chose the most standard car that can be found on European roads – a relatively cheap and not so perfect Ford Focus in terms of technology. So, a vehicle that almost everyone can afford, likes used or new. In this case, it doesn’t matter. Unlike mobile devices that record your movements, procedures and habits for marketing reasons, then to collect data that can contribute to a better user experience of separate devices, the car collects similar data for more regular and correct servicing, sending data to the factory that will use them. For improvements and enhancements of future generations of models and the like. Let’s go in order and see what the car knows about us:

1. Did he move at all?

The central unit of the car remembers every start of the engine, unlocking and locking, starting the vehicle from the place, the driving time in time and the number of miles travelled. The reason for this is to warn the driver that it is time to visit the service — regular or emergency — and this information can make it easier for service technicians to maintain and repair the vehicle.

2. Who was in the car, which was driving?

Since modern cars have a Bluetooth connection and the ability to pair mobile devices via Android Auto or Apple Car Play applications, it is not challenging to conclude how many people were in the car, who was behind the wheel, with whom who communicated in the meantime …

3. Who left the vehicle and when?

The seat belt warning system can easily detect which seat in the car was occupied when someone sat on it when he got up and got out of the vehicle… By combining data from the system for pairing mobile devices, it is not difficult to conclude which specific the person (name and surname) was in the vehicle, where she got into it, how long she stayed in it, where she went, where she came from… And the rest. It should not be forgotten that the vehicle registers the moment and number of openings of each of the doors in the car.

4. What is the starting and ending destination and how was it reached?

There is almost no modern vehicle that is not equipped with a GPS system. It is this device that records the exact position of the car at all times, so it is not difficult to make an accurate map of movement with all-weather data – when the car left the starting destination, where it was moving, whether, where and how much it stopped, when it arrived at its destination. What was the average speed of movement … If navigation is used while driving, this process is much easier to decipher.

5. Driving style

Inside every car today there is a large number of sensors to monitor engine load, brakes, stability and other parameters essential to driving. Based on them, you can easily determine the driving style, average speed, consumption, the number of pressures on the brake drawer, the stopping distance of the vehicle, the type of road on which it moved… Simply – everything.

6. Driver condition

The electronics that make up today’s cars mean that the condition of the driver is constantly monitored, to take measures in order to prevent accidents in critical situations. Thus, the electronics monitor and remember whether the “driver” slept enough, whether he may not have been tired while driving, whether he followed the roadway as prescribed or whether he “shuffled” (a device for monitoring tracking and remaining in the lane), was he perhaps under the influence of alcohol?

7. Driver activities

Vehicle systems can also process data such as talking on a mobile phone, typing SMS messages, listening to radio programs or music from one of the sound carriers, monitoring multimedia content via the central or auxiliary screens in the vehicle…

Behaviour in the vehicle

Every device, every command in the vehicle, every detail without which driving is impossible, are based on electricity and electronics. Sensors and switches are placed everywhere so that every action is stored in the vehicle’s memory. Don’t be surprised if someone shows you the memory slots your vehicle is equipped with at some point. In doing so, we are talking about very serious memory capacities ranging from 16GB and up! This is a lot of space for the size of the data that is stored, so there is enough memory for a year or more. Approximately, the memory is designed to cover the period between two service visits. And in most cases, it is a certain number of miles or a year, so the sooner it expires. So, “the big brother” is in your vehicle as a blind passenger that almost no one even knows about.

Now, you will say that your car has only the basic equipment and that not all these “spies” are built into it. You are wrong! Namely, it is much cheaper for vehicle manufacturers to install (almost) everything they have on offer in each manufactured car, and to activate certain functions depending on what you pay for. It would cost them far more to install the details you order in one vehicle if desired, and the other to be without it. Logistics costs a lot, far more than we can even imagine. So, every car that reaches the end-user has all the necessary tools for control and supervision. Don’t have navigation? Error! It’s just not activated to be of use to you, but that’s why it works really well in the background. Is your car from the “smart” generation? Well, if it was produced in 2011 or later, it almost certainly is. Although it is not excluded that even those a little older can monitor you well and record your every “step.”