For OnStar and Other Connected-Car Tech, the Age of Innocence Is Over

Illustration by Andy Potts|Car and DriverFrom the September/October 2025 issue of Car and Driver.Telematics seemed so benign when General Motors brought OnStar to market in 1996. With a cellular modem and GPS onboard, OnStar-equipped vehicles could communicate with an external service center to summon assistance in the event of a crash. Soon the system could remotely diagnose vehicular maladies and give spoken turn-by-turn directions. In the ensuing years, however, the perception of connected vehicle tech has shifted from helpfully innovative to potentially exploitative. OnStarOnStarThough GM and OnStar are not the only actors in this space, the automaker and its subsidiary’s early market penetration, name recognition, and public skirmishes with the federal government make them perhaps the most well-known. So how did OnStar go from a seemingly innocuous feature to a tool for collecting and selling personal data? Let’s take a closer look. 1996OnStar debuts as a dealer option on select 1997 Cadillacs for $895, plus installation, cell service, and a monthly subscription fee of $22.50. GM positions the telematics technology as a safety and convenience feature.OnStar2002OnStar prepares to shift from an analog cellular network to a digital one—enabling, among other things, more reliable transmission of data over greater distances—and equips some vehicles with digital-ready hardware.2008Early OnStar adopters are left high and dry after analog service goes away.OnStar2011A planned update to OnStar’s terms and conditions includes language around the continued collection, as well as sharing and selling, of data from former subscribers. After Sen. Chuck Schumer calls on the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to investigate, OnStar reverses course.2015Smart Driver debuts, giving OnStar members with eligible vehicles the chance to get a detailed assessment of their driving, data that may get them insurance discounts.OnStar2022Some 2015 and earlier models lose OnStar connectivity due to the sunsetting of the 2G digital network the vehicles relied on for connectivity.2024GM discontinues Smart Driver. January 2025The FTC alleges that GM collected precise driving data through Smart Driver without clear disclosure to consumers and sold it to third parties without adequate consent. As a result, insurance companies used the info to drop drivers from plans or raise premiums. As part of a settlement with the government, GM receives a five-year ban from disclosing such data to consumer reporting agencies.General MotorsApril 2025GM files a motion to dismiss a multi-district class-action lawsuit related to the Smart Driver data collection, with its lawyers arguing that the company’s acts were not an invasion of privacy, as drivers on public roads have “no reasonable expectation of privacy.”General MotorsPay to Play Today, all new GM vehicles include a basic OnStar package for eight years. Upgrade packages cost $9.99 to $64.99 per month for current models. Packages for older GM vehicles with OnStar run from $14.99 to $79.99 per month.
Source: caranddriver.com