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jamilbkyesterday at 8:38 PM3 repliesview on HN

I remember yanking out the onstar unit in my 2015 silverado to physically disconnect the cell antenna. This was (is?) the only practical way to disable cellular in that vehicle.

Kudos to Rivian for making this a supported user privacy feature.


Replies

cjyesterday at 8:50 PM

As someone who got into a rollover accident which ended with my car upside down on a freeway, hearing only the onstar person talking to me while half conscious, this is sad.

I do distinctely remember strongly disliking the user agreement I signed for the "internet connected" features of the car when I bought it. 100% rubbed me the wrong way and I couldn't' find a way to opt out, and I wasn't so motivated to physically remove it from my new car. Thankfully.

Shouldn't have to trade privacy for safety.

show 2 replies
dlenskiyesterday at 10:01 PM

> Kudos to Rivian for making this a supported user privacy feature.

Same. This is the first thing that I've ever read that makes me think I might be willing to buy a modern vehicle.

nullcyesterday at 9:49 PM

They've fixed that in later models, disconnecting the module disables the dash now.

But don't worry, the FTC is out to protect you. Their settlement with GM says that can only sell your name attached to zipcode resolution location data and only sell your precise location trace attached to an opaque ID rather than your name.