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EU directive Black boxes SOS from april 2018 - brum

The latest EU directive approved Tuesday mandates the fitting of black boxes capable of SOS / remote interregation.

Supposed reason: in case of an accident the emergency services are contacted automatically.

Unintended consequences: Emergency services overwhelmed with millions of trivial callouts. Hacking will allow criminals to track you and aid home burgulary.

Intended consequences? With gps and mobile comms, tracking of all vehicles is now a piece of cake, allowing automatic fine/penalty point issuance for minor speeding, parking offences etc. Selling of data to insurance companies with all that may bring. A fantastic money earner for mobile phone companies, no doubt we have to pay for the systems operational costs somehow.

Time to stop the EU before they start chipping us like dogs....

EU directive Black boxes SOS from april 2018 - Leif

"Time to stop the EU before they start chipping us like dogs...."

Oi, don't give them ideas ... :)

EU directive Black boxes SOS from april 2018 - Wackyracer

Well, If UKIP get in power it seems we won't have to worry about any of this EU nonsense.

EU directive Black boxes SOS from april 2018 - RobJP

Hate to say it, but this is a total non-story. A bit like the Daily Mail, where they don't let the facts get in the way of a good front page.

This was actually announced a couple of days ago. The data (which will be transferred in the event of an accident which activates airbags) will ONLY include make of car, type of fuel the car uses, time of accident and location.

The details are available here : www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-32495058

Regarding criminals, the 'authorities', etc hacking the systems and tracking your every move ... well, most people carry smartphones these days, which are equally hackable.

Do you refuse to carry one of those ?

Do you refuse to allow any family members or friends to carry them (as the MiBs can track you through your passengers) ?

At some point, paranoid fools start wearing tinfoil hats ...

EU directive Black boxes SOS from april 2018 - slkfanboy

As a professional house bugular i alway find it easy to know when people have gone to work and the house is emply, basically no cars = emply. Pets are helpful too as they act diferantly when there owners are around.On entry checking the calendar for when they are next on holiday works fine. No hacking needed

EU directive Black boxes SOS from april 2018 - jc2

This technology was on my 2012 Ford as standard and not a high spec one either.

EU directive Black boxes SOS from april 2018 - jc2

This technology was on my 2012 Ford as standard and not a high spec one either.

EU directive Black boxes SOS from april 2018 - focussed

Not to worry-a few weeks after these intrusive EU black boxes are appearing in new cars those ingenious little chaps in Hong Kong will have designed and will be selling another little black box on ebay that renders the EU black box inoperative.

They will probably come with a free tinfoil hat too!

EU directive Black boxes SOS from april 2018 - oldroverboy.

Not Hong Kong but china, only thing is it will transmit the information to a Chinese manufacturing co and you,ll be offered spare parts cheapo. But, I'm not paranoid, THEY are out to get us.

EU directive Black boxes SOS from april 2018 - oldroverboy.

just to be sure, I have my very own doctor with me when driving. So no need for the ?? ambulance

EU directive Black boxes SOS from april 2018 - alan1302

Very well said RobJP

EU directive Black boxes SOS from april 2018 - ExA35Owner

I am all too well aware that anecdotes don't add up to data. But I have knowledge of two fatal accidents - lone driver, sober, at night, car in good order in both cases - where the car left the road and was undiscovered for hours - over 24 hours in one case. This delay prevented life-saving care being administered. If the system had been fitted, these two young people might well have survived, and their families and police would not have spent heartbreaking hours searching for them.

I don't know what proportion of emergency calls are made after road traffic collisions in which the caller either doesn't know the location, or gives it wrongly. Avoiding these situations could also be life-saving.

I'm glad I have the technology in my low-budget Ford. I would like it to be present in all the cars my children and grandchildren travel in as well.