Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Chuck Schumer: OnStar Knows You Blast Creed In Your Ride
By
Christopher Robbins
Published Sep 26, 2011
Modified Sep 26, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Christopher Robbins
Published Sep 26, 2011
Modified Sep 26, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
GM's OnStar system is so concerned about finding you the closest car wash and finding you an Ethiopian restaurant that the company tracks the location and speed of its customers long after their subscriptions have expired. US Senator and Big Apple Juice enemy Chuck Schumer takes issue with OnStar knowing where you are and whether you're listening to Linkin Park. "OnStar is attemping one of the most brazen invasions of privacy in recent memory," Schumer tells CBS. "I urge OnStar to abandon." There's no point in abandoning your vehicle though: that OnStar computer chip lodged in your temple isn't going anywhere.
OnStar claims that customers are aware that they are tracking their every move after their contracts expire, and they can always tell the company to stop the tracking. The company also "reserves the right to share or sell data on customers' speed, location, use of seat belts and other practices," but "hasn't done so and doesn't plan to." And when a corporation says they're going to be responsible with your personal data, they mean it!
The Senator isn't buying OnStar's excuses, and is writing an angry letter to the FTC and the company stating that GPS monitoring should cease as soon as the service does. If only there were a way to get around that didn't involve getting in a motor vehicle at all. What remains completely legal however, are advertisements that pretty much ensure that you will NOT survive a car accident without OnStar.
Tagged
big brother
cars
charles schumer
gm
onstar
senator schumer
Christopher Robbins
Christopher Robbins is a New York City reporter covering transportation, affordable housing, local politics, and criminal justice. His work has also appeared in New York Magazine, The Village Voice and The New York Times. Chris is a graduate of Patrick Henry High School in Roanoke, Virginia, and enjoys biking to Fort Tilden in the summertime.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Queens man found dead, police say, and injured woman is his mother, neighbors say
Police are investigating a related incident in which a 62-year-old woman was found injured beneath the Van Wyck Expressway.
By
Charles Lane
Published Oct 14, 2026 at 7:39 p.m. ET
Man shot by ICE in NYC's Marble Hill said federal officers never identified themselves
The wounded man said he didn't learn ICE agents were involved until he woke up in the hospital.
By
Arya Sundaram
and
Samantha Max
News
Man shot by ICE in NYC's Marble Hill said federal officers never identified themselves
The wounded man said he didn't learn ICE agents were involved until he woke up in the hospital.
By
Arya Sundaram
and
Samantha Max
Brooklyn school dean says MTA officers assaulted him over a $3 bus fare he says he paid
By
Carol Chen
National Grid customers in NYC will see higher gas bills this winter
By
Rosemary Misdary
Bruce Blakeman joins Gov. Hochul in support for expanding NY rape law
By
Jon Campbell
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .