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A car-rental company in Connecticut used satellites
to track clients' use of its cars to the point where
this private company handed out speeding fines to those
who exceeded 79 mph, according to the Associated Press.
GPS devices, in addition to broadcasting latitude and
longitude, can also determine variables such as altitude
and speed. An Arizona man found that his rental car
bill jumped to more than $1,000 after his GPS-enabled
rental car revealed that he crossed state lines, which
kicked in some of the "small print" on the contract
that enabled the company to significantly boost the
mileage charges.
Car rental companies involved in such incidents have
made a logical argument that on-board GPS devices can
protect them from clients who abuse the vehicles and
who may use them in a dangerous manner.
Some popular, emerging technologies clearly carry the
potential for abuses in which an individual's privacy
can be threatened and even invaded. In Ithaca, for example,
a landlord was charged last week with covertly making
video recordings of college-student tenants.
That landlord reportedly used tiny cameras that are
widely available from retailers on the Web and in some
electronics stores. Such cameras, along with affordable
GPS devices, were relatively unheard of a decade ago.
Today, they are common consumer items.
When new technologies engender new forms of abuse,
then it is time for elected lawmakers to step in and
modernize the laws on the books. In New York and other
states, some laws are changing. For example, covert
recording of people in their homes, as Ithaca law enforcement
officers have alleged in the landlord case, once was
punishable as a misdemeanor harassment charge.
Today, such activities can result in a far more serious
felony charge. Snooping on car rental clients today
seems to be a rare occurrence. Only a few cases, such
as those in Connecticut and Arizona, have been recorded.
Yet those cases highlight a greater potential for the
abuse of an everyday citizen's privacy.
State and federal lawmakers need to monitor rapidly
developing tracking technologies and be sure that consumer-protection
and privacy laws keep pace.
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