I seldom use my GPS simply because I prefer paper maps and usually know where I am and where I'm going. None the less, I'm curious if my GPS is still tracking me even when its not in use. The radio is always on but does that also activate the GPS?
After 10 years in the intel business and watching dozens of spy, cop, detective series etc. in movies and TV and seeing security cameras everywhere, I'm skittish about being tracked electronically, whether passive or active. I know auto insurers need our permission to track us to get lower rates. And I know all new cars come with a 10-second (?) chip to record an auto's final 10 seconds of operation before a collision. Our cell phones also record which towers we use, so I don't think I'm being paranoid wondering about the GPS device in my car.
Any insights would be helpful. Thanks.

 

I actually had similar concerns about this and expressed them on a radar detector site I frequent. Some of those guys are pretty sharp on the computing side of the automotive world, and what they told me is storing where you are on GPS takes quite a bit of memory to keep a running tab. It's not a large amount per location bit, but it would need to record your location every few seconds and over time that adds up. A radar detector, at least, does not have the memory needed to keep a running log of your location. I doubt the automakers would be willing to put that much memory into keeping track of where you are either, because it doesn't serve to increase profits, would increase their costs, and would wind up being a public relations nightmare if it came out that your car was constantly keeping track of everywhere you went and it could be retrieved at any time.

What SHOULD concern you is the fact that communications is a 2-way street, so the only way there could be any meaningful tracking would be from uploading your signal somewhere it can be stored. Not to mention, it's already come out that the cops have used Onstar to listen in to what's being said in someone's car without their knowledge. But, they'll only do it if the cops hand them a warrant. If it's a big concern for you, the solution is to disconnect the GPS antenna because without that, the car can scream its electronic brains out and nobody would hear a thing. Disconnect it at the radio though, not the roofline, because while it's not nearly as efficient without the antenna the wiring to the antenna can still allow the system to transmit. If it's disconnected at the radio, it's not even going to make it to the car next to you in traffic.

On the accident recorder, it's a loop recorder, and it's probably only recording 30 seconds worth at a time. It has to record enough to keep a running tab, process, and decide where to overwrite at, and it's constantly overwriting. If you're concerned about a cop potentially tapping into that to see where you've been, by the time the cop walks up to your car, gets you out of your car and gets you under control (handcuffs, back of his car,) then get a data recorder hooked up to read the black box, all it's going to have is a minute's idling time. Not a concern, and even when they do pull information it's only pulling vehicle telemetry. They'll know how much gas you were giving it, how hard you hit the brakes, whether the lights or signal was on, which way you turned the wheel, ect. which will let them reconstruct an accident, but it won't tell them where you were coming from although if the car has a compass feature it may know what direction you were traveling in.

Insurers aren't tracking you with their little dongles either, they're just keeping track of how you drive through the same telemetry the accident recorder uses, but theirs records a lot longer. They want to know if you're prone to standing on the gas and brakes, turn the wheel hard, ect, which indicates whether you're a spirited driver or a base commuter.

I'm with you on the paper maps and paying attention. I've only used an onboard GPS system a couple of times, and didn't like it. I do better with maps.

 

Thanks for the input.
I was aware of the 30-second telemetry loop and figured that's how they determined that Tiger Woods was speeding and never hit the brakes prior to his most recent destruction of a fine automobile. As for unhooking the GPS -- I'm all for it but I think a better solution is to simply not use it, as you suggested. (If I plan to commit some illegal act I'll make sure the GPS is off and my cell phone is left at home.) I don't know squat about electrical stuff and most often just call in a pro when I need something. So I'm going to leave the antennae and other hook-ups untouched because I don't want to loose my Sirius XM (Willie's Roadhouse, Country Classics etc.).
Again, I appreciate your input and wonder if Dodge Cares has any further info on their fine truck's operations :-)

 

Except that the GPS unit in the dash doesn't stop recording just because it's off, provided it has the storage or the uplink. And the uplink is there, so you're depending upon the good graces of Sirius and Dodge to not be saving it to a massive land-based server farm somewhere. If you want to do anything illegal, you'll need to either unplug the satcom or get a non-satcom equipped vehicle to do it in. I seriously DodgeCares is going to have any input for you, but if they do have any input I seriously doubt it would be accurate. Even though I find them to be bloody useless (had a new 2016 Charger with HVAC problems at 5K miles that they promised much but delivered nothing on) I wouldn't blame them for being accurate on this because if FCA or Sirius was collecting location data, no customer-facing group within either company would be provided with accurate information on it.