FC: Richard Smith on GPS units, cars, and commercial tracking

[Declan McCullagh <declan () well com>]

[If GPS tracking is being done for commercial purposes, and customers
know what they're getting (most will), this doesn't seem to me to be a
huge problem. If you don't like it, unplug it. True, the collected data
can be stored and accessed via subponea, but some people may not
care. Put another way, they may weigh the benefits of convenience over
the cost of the (theoretical, for most people) privacy invasion. That's
a different choice than I'd make, but that's their right. --Declan]

---

From: "Richard M. Smith" <rms () computerbytesman com>
To: <politech () politechbot com>, <ses () unc edu>,
        <rms () computerbytesman com>
Subject: RE: U.K. plans to track all drivers with GPS, charge fees; DNA data
Date: Mon, 25 Feb 2002 22:41:02 -0500

Declan,

I am convinced that 10 years down the road, that GPS units will be
standard equipment on all new cars.  It seems like there are many uses
for a GPS unit in a car.  Some will be good news for the car owner and
some will be not so good news.  Here's my list of likely uses for these
black boxes:

   - Road tax collection system based on when, where, and how much
someone drives
   - Car insurance payment system based on when, where, and how much
someone drives
   - Parking fee collection system for both private and public spaces
   - Stolen or lost car location system
   - Black box for accident reconstruction
   - Travel information system (eg., Where's the nearest gas station?)
   - Travel directions

The primary use of these boxes will be for commercial applications and
not government snooping.

The other standard piece equipment I expect to see on cars are
electronic license plates similar to the Ez-Pass transponders used today
to pay tolls on turnpikes and bridges.

Richard M. Smith
http://www.ComputerBytesMan.com




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