Black boxes, crash investigations, and your privacy

What should we think about Event Data Recorders (EDRs), those electronic devices built in to many cars that record vehicle information in the few seconds just before and after a crash? Are they pivotal to lifesaving, another Big Brother threat to privacy, or both?

Depending on their level of sophistication, EDRs can note information such as pre-crash speed, brake use, seat-belt use, and air-bag deployment. They could gather more information, such as steering angle, braking forces, occupant position, and so forth.

On the one hand, that information is very helpful to crash investigators and safety researchers and can help engineers design safer cars. On the other hand, many people think of these "black boxes" as unwelcome tattle-tales or at the least an invasion of privacy.

You, the law, and EDRs
Who should have access to EDR data is a contentious legal issue, and state laws vary in how much protection they offer to car owners from the prying eyes of, say, insurance companies or law enforcement personnel. At least 10 states have adopted laws on the subject since 2004, and many more state legislatures have begun crafting them.

Federal law will oblige automakers to disclose the existence of EDRs to car-buyers as of the 2011 model year. But several states have done that already. Most of the 20-plus states with laws on the books or pending require the existence of an EDR to be disclosed.

Another common legal theme is that the car owner owns the data and doesn't have to reveal it to anyone without a warrant or court order. Some states, such as New York, let crash researchers have access to the data but without identifying the car owner. Several states plan to limit or ban identity information from going to insurance companies or they prohibit insurance companies from using this data to calculate a person's insurance premium.

Grabbing the data
Most new-model cars are equipped with some form of EDR. Usually, it helps coordinate the computerized split-second, decision-making process that links crash sensors to safety systems like air bags and automatic seat-belt pretensioners. For instance, if your car has a multi-stage air bag system, the EDR gathers data on vehicle speed and who is buckled up to determine which air bags should deploy and at what level of force.

However, you can probably imagine a situation where if you were in a crash, you wouldn't necessarily want anyone to know how fast you were traveling beforehand. On the other hand, if some reckless driver crashes into you, then you might like for the EDR in their car to prove their guilt.

The EDR data exists as cryptic computer code and that it takes specialized gear to download it and proprietary software to interpret it. So whether you "own" the data or not, you cannot access it without help from your car's dealer or some other technical representative.

In a future blog post, we will continue our look at EDRs.

--Gordon Hard