Cash for Clunkers: Government Computer Spy Program
When you take advantage of the cash for clunkers car program (the Car Allowance Rebate System), the U.S. federal government gets to play computer spy without your permission.
Here’s how it works.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) mandates car dealers register in order to participate in the program. However, a condition of registration requires the dealers to surrender all data on their computers and treats those car dealer computers as if they were owned by the federal government.
Now imagine if you tried to pull a stunt like this when someone bought a product from your website. In other words, every purchaser was agreeing as part of the buying process to surrender complete access to their computer files to you and allow you to treat their private data on their computers as if you owned it. Want to bet how long it would take for the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to come after you and how quickly you’d be sued for deceptive trade practices?
Yet somehow privacy rights advocates who have been complaining after 9/11 about Big Brother aren’t saying anything about the spying for clunkers program. Makes you wonder if their agenda has anything to do with privacy or perhaps just partisan hit jobs depending on who they like to see in the Oval Office.
Let’s be frank. Invasion of privacy is invasion of privacy. It shouldn’t matter which political party is responsible for doing it. If the Republicans did it under the Patriot Act, it doesn’t justify the Democrats doing it under the Cash for Clunkers program. Both are shredding your constitutional rights.
Hat tip: Washington Times
About the Author
With an advanced international law degree from Georgetown University and more than 15 years of real world legal experience, Attorney Mike Young is President of the Internet Ethics Council and creator of Website Legal Forms Generator software. He helps entrepreneurs protect and grow their businesses online.
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As for what’s being collected, read Obama administration withholds data on clunkers.
Is this legal?
Dori,
Is it legal? Perhaps. Unethical? Definitely.
Let’s assume that the notice was transparent so that the average dealer could make an informed decision whether or not to participate in the program knowing the government had access to the dealer’s computer files. In that case, probably okay as far as the dealer is concerned. If the typical dealer wouldn’t understand the legalese, then the government has crossed the line with regard to the dealer. Of course, the dealer isn’t going to sue the government over it if the dealer ever wants to get those rebate checks.
The larger issue is the customer whose personal records were put into the dealer’s computer. Where’s the consent for the government to have those records? Did the dealer adequately explain that cash-for-clunkers meant that Uncle Sam got to spy on the customer’s dealer records? Doubtful. That’s crossing the line too.
Regardless of legality, what does it say about a government that promised to be more open and transparent than its predecessor administration?
Best wishes,
-Mike
Its interesting to note that the company that benefited the most from new car sales during the clunker program was Toyota. Now I don’t know that Toyotas are cleaner than other cars. I do know they are technically American made though the money goes to a a company based overseas. So who did the money really go to?
Wow, I never knew this. I was going to take one of my cars in for this program also. This is crazy. Everything changed after 9/11 because of the Patriot Act which is, why I have no idea, still in effect to this day. This is crazy.
And now, from what it seems, insurance companies are going to a universal system as well, which will also be regulated by the government.