Tesla’s use of in-car cameras to record and transmit video images of passengers to develop self-driving technology raises privacy concerns, Consumer Reports said Tuesday.
Consumer Reports said the use may undermine the safety benefits of driver monitoring, which is to warn drivers when they are not paying attention to the road.
“If Tesla has the ability to determine if the driver is not paying attention, it should warn the driver at the moment, as other automakers are already doing,” said Jake Fisher, senior director of Consumer Reports’ automotive testing center.
Automakers such as Ford and General Motors, whose monitoring systems do not record or transmit data or video, use infrared technology to identify drivers’ eye movements or head position to alert them if they show signs of limitation or distraction, the magazine said.
Tesla did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
The California-based Palo Alto automaker’s internal cameras are also a point of contention in China, where the military banned Tesla cars from entering its complexes, citing safety concerns.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk said last week that his company would be shut down if his cars were used for spying purposes.