'I Didn’t Consent To That': Woman Takes 4Runner To Toyota Dealership. Then She Sees An AI Surveillance System

Are car dealerships using AI to scan your car? That’s what a new video is claiming—and users aren’t happy about it.

According to TikTok user Jordan Ochoa (@jordan_the_ocho), she recently visited a Toyota dealership in Tucson, Arizona. Ochoa says this was a fairly common occurrence and that the maintenance to be performed was routine. 

This is why she was so surprised when, upon arriving at the dealership, her car was suddenly surrounded by “this black camera system.”

“I thought, ‘That's really bizarre. I didn't see those here last time,” Ochoa recalls. 

Upon further investigation, Ochoa says she realized that the camera system was powered by artificial intelligence.

What Is This AI-Powered Car Inspector Toyota Is Using?

Learning this, Ochoa was disturbed.

“I didn't consent to that,” she states. “The only thing I consented to is maintenance done on my vehicle. Never consented to my data being taken, my photos being taken, my vehicle’s information being taken—I didn't consent to that.”

Concerned, she approached the staff, who, she says, confirmed that it was, in fact, an AI-powered camera system. 

“So I asked them, ‘OK, well, what's it for? Where's the data going?’ ‘Oh, it's just going to our database,’” she states. “OK, so you have a dealership record system. Totally fine. Not a problem. But…is that data that you just took with the AI and the cameras going somewhere else? And that was my question. They did not know.”

Ochoa says she then asked the question to the general manager. She says she told the manager that the system is supposed to have local servers to work.

The Problems With AI

Ochoa says that the issue she experienced is indicative of growing frustration with artificial intelligence. While she commends the dealership, Precision Toyota of Tucson, Arizona, for looking into the issue, she says the necessity of these systems is questionable overall.

“This should have never probably happened in the first place,” she states. “And I think this is another reason we should all be aware of what tracking systems, what AI, whatever is being used in our world—because it starts with your vehicles, and then it starts with complete overreach of surveillance and, most importantly, non-consensual data, your data, being sold.”

In a follow-up video, she adds, “The thing that I have a problem with is if you're just going in for maintenance, then you're just going in for maintenance, and there's really no point for this AI thing to be there, especially taking information without your consent, and we don't know where the data is going.”

Ochoa also states in the follow-up that the dealership confirmed the server was cloud-based. That said, she says the dealership also told her that she did not have to use the AI system. Instead, she could simply inform them that she did not want to use the service and that they would perform the inspection manually.

What Do These AI Machines Really Do?

According to the UVeye website, the service uses photography and AI to detect potential problems with a vehicle. 

These problems can include issues with the underbody of the car, damage to the windshield, misaligned wheels, worn tires, and other problems with the exterior condition of the car.

This scan, the company argues, allows dealerships to process cars more quickly. Furthermore, it allows the dealership to dispute any fraudulent claims made by the customer. For example, if a customer claims there was a scratch on the car when it was received at the dealership, the dealership can review its time-stamped scans to see whether the scratch was already present before the car arrived. 

The company’s website states that preparing for the installation of one of these machines can involve making space for on-site servers. That said, the company’s privacy policy notes that information can be stored and processed across servers in the United States, the European Union, and Israel.

In an email to Motor1, a UVeye spokesperson wrote the following:

“UVeye operates more than 1,000 inspection systems globally, supporting some of the world’s leading automotive brands with transparent, accurate vehicle condition scans that help dealerships deliver a transparent and enhanced experience. By giving drivers a clear visual view of their vehicle in a way they’ve often never seen before, the technology helps educate consumers about safety, maintenance needs, and overall vehicle condition while building trust and transparency.”

“That commitment to safety extends to data protection. Scan data is encrypted and access-controlled, and we are committed to maintaining the highest standards of security, transparency, and responsible data handling across every level of the organization.”

Is This Information In Danger Of Being Hacked?

If one is not comfortable with their information being shared with another company without their explicit consent and a full understanding of where it will go, that is understandable.

However, it should be noted that one’s information is not more vulnerable because it’s being sent to a country currently at war.

Hackers can target companies and data centers anywhere in the world. For internet-connected systems, the physical location of servers is generally far less important than other factors like unpatched vulnerabilities and stolen credentials. This is why a 2020 white paper from Amazon Web Services claimed that “the physical location of data has little to no impact on threats propagated over the Internet.”

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Instead of worrying where a company’s servers are located, those concerned about their personal privacy and the security of their data should make an effort to opt out as much as possible. In short, your data cannot be stolen if it does not exist on a company’s servers.

Motor1 has reached out to Toyota via email, Precision Toyota via website contact form, and Ochoa via Instagram and Facebook direct message. We will update this story if any party responds.

 

 

 

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