paint codes and paranoia

[dred98]

Just updated my Aurora Classic website with lists of paint codes for the classics and a rather paranoid piece on black boxes.
Kindly comments welcome ;D

[JimW]

Definite paranoia..

In theory you can be tracked thru ABM/Interac/credit card purchases. There are cameras wherever you go, hwys, parking lots, stores etc. If someone wanted to track you, it can be done.

That EDR module I think is a great idea. Investigators depend on FDR in planes to investigate causes of crashes/malfunctions so why cant the same be true for vehicles.

To many people make fraudulant claims to insurance companies and the EDR can help curb that fraud, hopefully resulting in balanced insurance premiums..(ya right but thats the theory)

After all, none of our lives are really THAT exciting so if GM wants to track me via my EDR...I say give 'er.

Home...to work, to home, to gf's house, to home, to work to home...you get the idea

[Letitroll98]

First of all, I am so completely impressed by the whole site that I can't go on it anymore. It took me an hour to get back to this post; I kept reading so many great sites and articles. ;D I even reread a couple. The format is very attractive and easy to navigate as well. This is a really, really superior effort Howard, you should be most proud. (I'll be running out to check my paint code as well)

As far as the black box goes, I agree with what I got as the intended focus of the article. Namely that the info is Ok, but shouldn't there be some laws as to who gets the info. As it is now I gather they are saying anyone with a reader and access to your car after an accident can read it. I would be more comfortable if they needed a search warrant or your permission. As it is you could just unplug the unit if you don't want any recoverable info, right?

Technically I believe they are saying it constantly reads info in a 5 second loop until there is an airbag deployment, at which point the monitor freezes the info. (Kinda like Microsoft, freezes at any significant event)

As a larger issue we are having "Big Brother" invade our privacy more and more each day. Some of it is government intervention on the Bill of Rights like the so-called "Patriot Act". (Why don't they simply declare Martial Law and be done with it? 'Cause they don't have the courage). Or commercial invasion via Identity Tracking. All of this comes under the basic right to feel safe and secure in our domiciles. Where do you draw the line and what will you put up with. I'm looking at moving to Belize.

[dred98]

Thanks for the comments on the website (I'll send the cash under separate mail )
You got the point of the black box article - I'm not against GM collecting information to help them improve air bags - that was the original intention when they were first introduced. It's just that as soon as the police/government/whoever discovers more uses for that information they'll want access to it.
And saying that it doesn't matter if you're not doing anything wrong is to invite permanent surveillance by government agencies of one kind or another.
I'm sorry if this sounds paranoid - but someone has to worry about these things.
State/Provincial law probably varies as to who has access to the info - but I know who the info properly belongs to from my car - me.
Sorry for getting serious - I'll try not to let it happen again.