Ford Makes a Public 'Privacy Promise' as Connected Cars Multiply

Only 14% of U.S. car buyers fully understand what data their vehicle collects — and Ford is moving to close that gap. On Monday, the automaker unveiled what it calls a "privacy promise," an explicit commitment to keep customers' vehicle data safe and give them control over what they share, ahead of a new generation of connected cars.

The announcement, made in an interview with TechCrunch, includes a new website that explains what data Ford collects, how it uses that information, and how customers can change their settings. The controls themselves have existed for years. Ford's goal now is to communicate them more clearly, especially before it launches vehicles built on its upcoming "universal electric vehicle" platform.

"I personally think that it's super important for us to be making it very clear to our customers what our data practices are, and not only that, but making a commitment to them about it," Ford's chief privacy officer Kristin Jones said. "I also see this as a great opportunity to educate our customers about how they share data."

Why is Ford doing this now?

The timing is not accidental. Automakers are packing cars with connectivity that enables remote start, navigation, and driver-assistance software — features U.S. customers say they want. Yet awareness of what that connectivity collects remains low, and the industry has paid a price for exploiting that gap.

General Motors ran into trouble with the Federal Trade Commission over quietly selling driver data to third parties. Last week, that practice resulted in a $220 million settlement with 36 states — roughly $6 million per state on average, a measure of the regulatory exposure automakers now face.

That climate has also opened a marketing lane for rivals. Slate Auto, the EV startup backed by Jeff Bezos, has pitched itself as a better steward of customer data ahead of the expected launch of its minimalist pickup truck later this year.

Jones declined to engage on competitors. "I wouldn't comment on what our competitors are doing, or anything that's that's sort of been in the news there, but certainly it's something that people don't trust companies to take care with their data, and we really want to make sure we're building that trust relationship with them," she said.

The message is trust; the unanswered question is enforcement, since a promise is not a regulation.

What did Ford's own research find?

Ford surveyed 1,000 consumers. Ninety-one percent said data privacy was a key consideration when buying a vehicle.

"Realistically, it's not something they engage with every day, but they want to know that they're, again, in control, and that they have access to the information they need there," Jones said.

Jones joined Ford in 2024 after nearly two decades working on privacy in the legal, financial, and healthcare fields. She said the communication effort has been in development for most of her tenure. "It's been a journey for, frankly, most of the time I've been at Ford," she said.

What does the promise actually cover?

The new website will explain what data Ford collects, how it uses the information, and how customers can opt in or out. There is a trade-off: opting out disables some features. Turning off "connected services," for example, kills real-time navigation and built-in roadside assistance access.

Ford says the push is designed to justify why it asks for data access and to make clear the information will not be used for targeted advertising. Vehicle health data, for instance, gives owners better real-time maintenance information — but it will also "support research and development for future technologies," Jones said.

The sharpest commitments concern third parties.

"We also do not share information about how our customers are driving their vehicles to data brokers," Jones said. "I just want to kind of reiterate that we're not in it to try and monetize data in some way. We're trying to offer products and services that customers derive value from."

That is a direct break from the GM playbook, and Ford knows the comparison will be drawn. Whether a voluntary pledge holds as connected-vehicle data grows more valuable will test whether trust can scale with the software.