Consumer Watchdog

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Consumer Watchdog

Privacy

Consumer Watchdog investigations and advocacy on data privacy, surveillance, AI, and your right to control your personal information.
Trump Should Boot Barra From Autonomy board, Group Says

Trump Should Boot Barra From Autonomy board, Group Says

<p>President-elect Donald Trump should fire the General Motors Chairman and CEO from her position as co-chair of the newly formed Department of Transportation Advisory Committee on Automation in Transportation, a California-based watchdog group demands.</p> <p>In a letter addressed to Trump, Consumer Watchdog — a nonprofit organization “dedicated to providing an effective voice for taxpayers and consumers” — says GM chairman and CEO says Mary Barra “should not lead a panel recommending how to deploy her company’s automated vehicles.”</p>
Bill Would Fine Illegal Autonomous Vehicles $25K Per Day

Bill Would Fine Illegal Autonomous Vehicles $25K Per Day

<p><strong>Permits that only cost $150 are clearly worth taking the time to secure if this ends up being the alternative</strong></p> <p><span>Inspired by Uber's illegal autonomous taxi launch in California, a San Francisco assemblyman is calling on the state to tighten self-driving rules.</span></p>
Consumer Advocates Ask Uber For More Transparency

Consumer Advocates Ask Uber For More Transparency

<p>California-based advocacy group Consumer Watchdog publicly asked Uber to release test data surrounding its autonomous vehicle program and called on the mobility giant to go on-record regarding its plans to address several challenges currently faced by driverless technology.<br /> <br />
Uber Self-Driving Cars: When Will It Happen? California Lawmaker Comes Up With Penalties For Permitless Testing Of New Technology

Uber Self-Driving Cars: When Will It Happen? California Lawmaker Comes Up With Penalties For Permitless Testing Of New Technology

<div class="article-body" itemprop="articleBody"> <p>A California lawmaker doesn’t want operators of self-driving vehicles sneaking their cars on the road without permission.</p> <p>Democratic Assemblyman Phil Ting of San Francisco Thursday proposed fines as high as $25,000 per vehicle per day for any company testing self-driving vehicles on public roads without first obtaining a two-year, $150 permit from the Department of Motor Vehicles.</p>
Spousal Snoops Find Ally In Shared Devices

Spousal Snoops Find Ally In Shared Devices

<p><strong>Convenient stored passwords imperil privacy; Passwords on shared devices can be snooping spouses' best ally</strong></p> <p> </p> <p>James Phills uncovered details about his estranged wife's romance with his boss through private Facebook messages he wasn't meant to see.</p>
Uber Halts San Francisco Driverless Cars As DMV Revokes Test Fleet Registration

Uber Halts San Francisco Driverless Cars As DMV Revokes Test Fleet Registration

<p>Uber’s puzzling defiance of a California requirement that it get a $150 permit to operate self-driving cars in San Francisco came to an end with the ride-hailing company announcing it was suspending the program. Uber had little choice: California's Department of Motor Vehicles revoked registrations for its 16-vehicle test fleet earlier in the day.</p>
Uber Pulls Self-Driving Cars From California Roads

Uber Pulls Self-Driving Cars From California Roads

<p class="paragraph" data-pnum="1">The California Department of Motor Vehicles on Wednesday revoked the registration for Uber’s 16 self-driving cars over a permit fracas, effectively ending the company’s pilot program in San Francisco.</p>
Uber Self-Driving Car Registrations Revoked In San Francisco

Uber Self-Driving Car Registrations Revoked In San Francisco

<p><strong>Blow to transport company after permit battle over its 16 autonomous vehicles</strong></p> <p>Uber has been forced to halt its controversial pilot of self-driving cars in San Francisco after local highways regulators revoked its vehicles’ registrations, ending a legal stand-off over California’s rules on testing autonomous vehicles.</p>