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All cars sold in the EU come with eCall: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/ECall https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/ECall Edit: sorry, I extrapolated too much from

by blub 10y ago

All cars sold in the EU come with eCall: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/ECall https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/ECall Edit: sorry, I extrapolated too much from my own experience. It's still not legally mandatory until 2018, however some manufacturers do indeed make it mandatory today. Due to privacy protections I don't think marketers and insurers have access to driving data, but the security concerns remain. Their back-ends can be hacked, rogue employees could listen in, etc.

jessaustin 10y ago
It's only a matter of time before insurers get that data. They'll even have some plausible safety arguments to bolster their bribery. For freedom, ride a bike.
- TeMPOraL 10y ago
  Until GPS with GSM module embedded in frame becomes a viable countermeasure against bike thefts that is.
  - jessaustin 10y ago
    Haha, I meant freedom to ride your own bike, although perhaps Proudhon would disagree...
    - sevensor 10y ago
      I worry that it's only a matter of time until cyclists are required to carry transponders "for our safety" on streets full of self-driving cars.
- CaptSpify 10y ago
  I wish I could ride a bike. In many cities, that's just not an option
k-mcgrady 10y ago
>> "All cars sold in the EU come with eCall" I hadn't heard of this. Just looking at the article you linked it seems it is only available in Slovenia and only since 2015. Is the tech still in all cars but just not being utilised?
- pjc50 10y ago
  It's supposedly going to be mandatory by 2018: https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/news/ecall-all-new-cars-april-2018 https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/news/ecall-all... eCall is weird. There are supposedly privacy protections, but I can't see how it can work without being always on the mobile network. Which tells you what cell the car is in. Hardly anyone has heard of it and details seem vague.
  - blub 10y ago
    So they postponed it? Some manufacturers have decided to be proactive and have enabled it with their own back-ends. :)
- blub 10y ago
  I know for a fact that some manufacturers (check wikipedia) ship all cars with this system enabled. It might not be connected to the "real eCall" back-ends, but rather to the manufacturer back-ends, but it's there. My current car has it. It used to be optional before 2015, but then they made it mandatory with the expectation that the law comes in effect.
Silhouette 10y ago
All cars sold in the EU come with eCall They've been talking about that technology for years, but that's a long way from not being able to buy a car without it. In fact, the official site[1] says: "On 28 April 2015 the European Parliament voted in favour of eCall regulation which requires all new cars be equipped with eCall technology from April 2018. eCall will be seamlessly functioning throughout Europe by that time." And that's before the inevitable privacy lawsuits and so on. [1] https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/ecall-time-saved-lives-saved https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/ecall-time-saved-...
lordnacho 10y ago
I went for a test drive the other day, and the sales guy told me on his first test drive a couple of year ago, the customer actually rolled the BMW he was considering to buy. Upside down, airbags on. He was so impressed by the automatic assistance call that he actually bought the car.
- tdkl 10y ago
  > and the sales guy told me :D

by blub 10y ago

jessaustin 10y ago

It's only a matter of time before insurers get that data. They'll even have some plausible safety arguments to bolster their bribery. For freedom, ride a bike.

TeMPOraL 10y ago
Until GPS with GSM module embedded in frame becomes a viable countermeasure against bike thefts that is.
- jessaustin 10y ago
  Haha, I meant freedom to ride your own bike, although perhaps Proudhon would disagree...
  - sevensor 10y ago
    I worry that it's only a matter of time until cyclists are required to carry transponders "for our safety" on streets full of self-driving cars.
CaptSpify 10y ago
I wish I could ride a bike. In many cities, that's just not an option

k-mcgrady 10y ago

>> "All cars sold in the EU come with eCall" I hadn't heard of this. Just looking at the article you linked it seems it is only available in Slovenia and only since 2015. Is the tech still in all cars but just not being utilised?

pjc50 10y ago
It's supposedly going to be mandatory by 2018: https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/news/ecall-all-new-cars-april-2018 https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/news/ecall-all... eCall is weird. There are supposedly privacy protections, but I can't see how it can work without being always on the mobile network. Which tells you what cell the car is in. Hardly anyone has heard of it and details seem vague.
- blub 10y ago
  So they postponed it? Some manufacturers have decided to be proactive and have enabled it with their own back-ends. :)
blub 10y ago
I know for a fact that some manufacturers (check wikipedia) ship all cars with this system enabled. It might not be connected to the "real eCall" back-ends, but rather to the manufacturer back-ends, but it's there. My current car has it. It used to be optional before 2015, but then they made it mandatory with the expectation that the law comes in effect.

Silhouette 10y ago

All cars sold in the EU come with eCall They've been talking about that technology for years, but that's a long way from not being able to buy a car without it. In fact, the official site[1] says: "On 28 April 2015 the European Parliament voted in favour of eCall regulation which requires all new cars be equipped with eCall technology from April 2018. eCall will be seamlessly functioning throughout Europe by that time." And that's before the inevitable privacy lawsuits and so on. [1] https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/ecall-time-saved-lives-saved https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/ecall-time-saved-...

lordnacho 10y ago

I went for a test drive the other day, and the sales guy told me on his first test drive a couple of year ago, the customer actually rolled the BMW he was considering to buy. Upside down, airbags on. He was so impressed by the automatic assistance call that he actually bought the car.

tdkl 10y ago
> and the sales guy told me :D