Cadillac Smart Driver and Privacy Concerns

[shbox]

There are at least some of us that have turned off the smart driver function in the app and have not had it magically come back on, so I would be curious as to why it happens to some and not others. I don't see much of a problem if turning it off in the app is reliable and it is guaranteed that any further data is not being uploaded. I realize that there is a huge element of trust there . LOL, I'm getting my LN report just to verify.

 

[coffee_time]

There are at least some of us that have turned off the smart driver function in the app and have not had it magically come back on, so I would be curious as to why it happens to some and not others. I don't see much of a problem if turning it off in the app is reliable and it is guaranteed that any further data is not being uploaded. I realize that there is a huge element of trust there . LOL, I'm getting my LN report just to verify.

I think one other thing that people should consider is that LN only has the preceding six months worth of data. Turn off smartdriver, hope it stays off, and in six months your record is clean again.

 

[SynisterAZ]

There are at least some of us that have turned off the smart driver function in the app and have not had it magically come back on, so I would be curious as to why it happens to some and not others. I don't see much of a problem if turning it off in the app is reliable and it is guaranteed that any further data is not being uploaded. I realize that there is a huge element of trust there . LOL, I'm getting my LN report just to verify.

Thats the thing, I was ok with just turning it off (verified it was when this thread started), got my LN report, squeaky clean, then randomly Smart Diver is turned back on.

I have better things to do with my time than babysit a data mine so I guess Ill go get my flint axe and bearskin shawl and live in the OffStar world.

 

[AtrociKitty]

One really surprising lesson from this thread is how many people actually use the app. What sort of features or convenience does it offer that made everyone install it?

I'm still waiting for my LexisNexis report as the used, no-app test case.

 

[coffee_time]

One really surprising lesson from this thread is how many people actually use the app. What sort of features or convenience does it offer that made everyone install it?

I'm still waiting for my LexisNexis report as the used, no-app test case.

For auto cars you can use it to remote start the car. For manual cars it's mostly just looking at data. I've used it to check fuel level, tire pressures, and even set a geofencing alert for when my car was in the shop getting PPF so I could make sure they weren't joyriding the thing.

I actually used it this morning because I forgot my keys in the house and popped the trunk with the app.

EDIT: I actually used it to set all my radio station favorites as well, although admittedly that's a one time use.

 

[SynisterAZ]

One really surprising lesson from this thread is how many people actually use the app. What sort of features or convenience does it offer that made everyone install it?

I'm still waiting for my LexisNexis report as the used, no-app test case.

The digital owners manual was useful to quickly look something up without digging thru the paper version.

 

[1Evil55]

I think one other thing that people should consider is that LN only has the preceding six months worth of data. Turn off smartdriver, hope it stays off, and in six months your record is clean again.

My tinfoil is telling me that LN gives the 6 month + info to another data mine. Just like I tell my kids, once it's on there, it never comes off.

 

[minn19]

While I still believe their is really nothing you can do about this, it is complete horse hockey (dating myself, Colonel Potter quote to keep it clean), what GM and other car manufacturers/pretty much every big business is doing with data. Especially if you turn it off/opt out, it should stay off.

With my 24 C8 it gets more complicated with the Google integration. They can probably get the info they need from the phone sensors. Not to mention the “black boxes” or wherever they store the data on the car itself.

A word of caution for those trying to physically disable OnStar in the car. Not surprisingly this is a huge thread on the Corvette forum as well. A few posts there have advised GM has integrated OnStar into other systems as to make it nearly impossible to fully disable it. If you disable it, it may mess with other systems in the car. Not sure how true that is or what year/version, just a heads up before you go cutting wires, unplugging things etc.

It is extremely frustrating that companies are selling data that isn’t theirs. We bought the car, the tv, the phone etc, it is our data and should be treated as such. Or at the very least compensated in some way. It’s a double whammy in how they use it as a revenue stream for themselves and we get hit with the bigger bill in the end.

I don’t want to make this political, I know people think it is Big Brother and there may be elements to that, but this is mainly big business for revenue. It is going to take an act of Big Brother to end these practices.

 

[LS6-M22]

This is a big

While I still believe their is really nothing you can do about this, it is complete horse hockey (dating myself, Colonel Potter quote to keep it clean), what GM and other car manufacturers/pretty much every big business is doing with data. Especially if you turn it off/opt out, it should stay off.

With my 24 C8 it gets more complicated with the Google integration. They can probably get the info they need from the phone sensors. Not to mention the “black boxes” or wherever they store the data on the car itself.

A word of caution for those trying to physically disable OnStar in the car. Not surprisingly this is a huge thread on the Corvette forum as well. A few posts there have advised GM has integrated OnStar into other systems as to make it nearly impossible to fully disable it. If you disable it, it may mess with other systems in the car. Not sure how true that is or what year/version, just a heads up before you go cutting wires, unplugging things etc.

It is extremely frustrating that companies are selling data that isn’t theirs. We bought the car, the tv, the phone etc, it is our data and should be treated as such. Or at the very least compensated in some way. It’s a double whammy in how they use it as a revenue stream for themselves and we get hit with the bigger bill in the end.

I don’t want to make this political, I know people think it is Big Brother and there may be elements to that, but this is mainly big business for revenue. It is going to take an act of Big Brother to end these practices.

This is a big reason that I tend to leave my phone at home when I decide to go on spirited drives. I am not one of those people that need to have my phone on my hip at all times

 

[1Evil55]

I'm big brother and I'm here to help....

RUN!!!!

 

[AtrociKitty]

The digital owners manual was useful to quickly look something up without digging thru the paper version.

I like having digital copies too, but I've always grabbed manuals for my cars as PDFs that I keep in a folder on my phone instead.

 

[DCV]

Same here....Just download it into your phone as a PDF,

 

[SS_Shooter]

Go visit a Vette, Camaro, or SS page and see all the theft just along the west coast alone. The GM V8's are a specific target. Sounds like the Mopar people are having similar issue.

Pro Tip: 99% of car thieves can't drive a manual.

 

[1Evil55]

Pro Tip: 99% of car thieves can't drive a manual.

Not according to the various threads from other sites.

 

[Sully]

Since I had my trunk opened up and given that I disabled the OnStars cellular link in my 21' Suburban, I decided to poke around in the CT5BW. The same LG Telematics module I have in my 21's Suburban is also in the 23' CT5BW, located in the trunk on the passenger side along the wheel well area under the rug.

Within the LG module which is called a (TCU/Telematics Control Unit), there's a cellular module board that will slide out after removing two torxs screws. You will see two coax plugs going into the module from the outside, one purple (cellular) and one brown (cellular/ possible GPS). On that module are two chips. The first chip is a Qualcomm MDM9240 (or other variation pending your vehicle year) Snapdragon X12 LTE Modem. The second chip is a SKYA21049 which is a SkyOne Automotive Multimode/Multiband module for 4GLTE/LTE-A. These chips control the persistent cellular link with Onstar based on what I can tell from looking at the chipset.

I simply unplugged the purple coax and this will effectively terminate the uplink to OnStar. (Note: I do believe both the purple and brown coax are used by each of the chips, as each chip allows for operation across GSM and CDMA frequencies, I will ultimately remove the brown coax as well after some testing to ensure its the same as my Suburban. I just wanted to ensure it doesn't disrupt GPS related functionality). However, the TCU will continue to function as designed, e.g. will continue to collect telematics and information but no longer able to send it anywhere. Given the integrations done on these vehicles, simply pulling the whole unit will work but may also lead to other functionality problems. You can cap off the female coax port with a coax terminator if you want but I haven't bothered. These units, as well as the shark fins, are very often ripped from the vehicles and tossed to the side of the road after being stolen.

After unplugging the purple coax, your Onstar button will go from GREEN to RED. You will also get a dash message upon start that your emergency calling feature needs attention. Otherwise, you should be good to go. In my Suburban, I've been fine for years. I'll check back in if I run into any issues with the CT5. I think it goes without saying, by doing this your OnStar (and associated features) will no longer function, thus do so at your own risk.

Some pictures below....

 

[1Evil55]

So when I'm finishing my install this weekend on my new rear bumper lights, I will be sure to look for the onstar box. Thank you @Sully for finding this!

 

[RS49]

Since I had my trunk opened up and given that I disabled the OnStars cellular link in my 21' Suburban, I decided to poke around in the CT5BW. The same LG Telematics module I have in my 21's Suburban is also in the 23' CT5BW, located in the truck on the passenger side along the wheel well area under the rug.

Within the LG module which is called a (TCU/Telematics Control Unit), there's a cellular module board that will slide out after removing two torxs screws. You will see two coax plugs going into the module from the outside, one purple (cellular) and one brown (cellular/ possible GPS). On that module are two chips. The first chip is a Qualcomm MDM9240 (or other variation pending your vehicle year) Snapdragon X12 LTE Modem. The second chip is a SKYA21049 which is a SkyOne Automotive Multimode/Multiband module for 4GLTE/LTE-A. These chips control the persistent cellular link with Onstar based on what I can tell from looking at the chipset.

I simply unplugged the purple coax and this will effectively terminate the uplink to OnStar. (Note: I do believe both the purple and brown coax are used by each of the chips, as each chip allows for operation across GSM and CDMA frequencies, I will ultimately remove the brown coax as well after some testing to ensure its the same as my Suburban. I just wanted to ensure it doesn't disrupt GPS related functionality). However, the TCU will continue to function as designed, e.g. will continue to collect telematics and information but no longer able to send it anywhere. Given the integrations done on these vehicles, simply pulling the whole unit will work but may also lead to other functionality problems. You can cap off the female coax port with a coax terminator if you want but I haven't bothered. These units, as well as the shark fins, are very often ripped from the vehicles and tossed to the side of the road after being stolen.

After unplugging the purple coax, your Onstar button will go from GREEN to RED. You will also get a dash message upon start that your emergency calling feature needs attention. Otherwise, you should be good to go. In my Suburban, I've been fine for years. I'll check back in if I run into any issues with the CT5. I think it goes without saying, by doing this your OnStar (and associated features) will no longer function, thus do so at your own risk.

Some pictures below....

 

[Jack Tors]

How to Figure Out What Your Car Knows About You (and Opt Out of Sharing When You Can)

 

[shbox]

Is this going to be the OFFstar mod?

 

[FI Fiend]

Since I had my trunk opened up and given that I disabled the OnStars cellular link in my 21' Suburban, I decided to poke around in the CT5BW. The same LG Telematics module I have in my 21's Suburban is also in the 23' CT5BW, located in the truck on the passenger side along the wheel well area under the rug.

Within the LG module which is called a (TCU/Telematics Control Unit), there's a cellular module board that will slide out after removing two torxs screws. You will see two coax plugs going into the module from the outside, one purple (cellular) and one brown (cellular/ possible GPS). On that module are two chips. The first chip is a Qualcomm MDM9240 (or other variation pending your vehicle year) Snapdragon X12 LTE Modem. The second chip is a SKYA21049 which is a SkyOne Automotive Multimode/Multiband module for 4GLTE/LTE-A. These chips control the persistent cellular link with Onstar based on what I can tell from looking at the chipset.

I simply unplugged the purple coax and this will effectively terminate the uplink to OnStar. (Note: I do believe both the purple and brown coax are used by each of the chips, as each chip allows for operation across GSM and CDMA frequencies, I will ultimately remove the brown coax as well after some testing to ensure its the same as my Suburban. I just wanted to ensure it doesn't disrupt GPS related functionality). However, the TCU will continue to function as designed, e.g. will continue to collect telematics and information but no longer able to send it anywhere. Given the integrations done on these vehicles, simply pulling the whole unit will work but may also lead to other functionality problems. You can cap off the female coax port with a coax terminator if you want but I haven't bothered. These units, as well as the shark fins, are very often ripped from the vehicles and tossed to the side of the road after being stolen.

After unplugging the purple coax, your Onstar button will go from GREEN to RED. You will also get a dash message upon start that your emergency calling feature needs attention. Otherwise, you should be good to go. In my Suburban, I've been fine for years. I'll check back in if I run into any issues with the CT5. I think it goes without saying, by doing this your OnStar (and associated features) will no longer function, thus do so at your own risk.

Some pictures below....

You're the man

Same spot on the CT4. Any tips on freeing the purple coax? Did you just push the retention clip and it came right off or was it some sort of twisting action? Having some trouble freeing mine