I guess targeting their phones works better. Phones can provide a lot more data, and with iOS and Android you have just two platforms that cover the vast majority of phones. If you're a state-level actor, you have the NSA, GHCQ or equivalent with full-time teams working on compromising both platforms, so probably have quite a few options available.

Cars are sometimes easier to get data out of though, and if the person has linked their phone to their car then it can contain much of the same information. https://theintercept.com/2021/05/03/car-surveillance-berla-m...

> car microphone

What?

There's probably not a single new car that doesn't come with at least one microphone in the cabin. You need at least one for Bluetooth handsfree and for voice commands.

Cars sold in Europe since 2018 need to have a system to automatically call emergency services in the event of an accident. So, there's that microphone.

No wonder EU cars are so expensive.

All new cars sold in the United States of America must have a backup camera.

https://eu.usatoday.com/story/money/cars/2014/03/31/nhtsa-re...

European airbag regulations also allow for smaller airbags that explode with less force since US regulations require automotive manufacturers to assume an unbelted driver. ECE specifications are based on people wearing seatbelts.

Yes - love one size fits all regulations like this. It’s so rediculous seeing Mazda Miata’s with mandatory backup cameras :p

That's great. But mandating an embedded cell phone? Hopefully it is a fully independent system that only turns on after a collision, but it still has a spooky big brother aspect to it.

I don't know what your point is about airbags. Some sort of weird defence of European safety standards?

I’m shocked insurance companies aren’t demanding access to telemetry in order to get decent rates.

The airbag thing was a dig that Americans are too stupid to wear seatbelts :p

I looked at the insurance plans that give a safe driving / low km bonus, they use a device that plugs I to the car diagnostics port. But it's actually a sham -- you get a discount on the next year, not the past year, so it's just a trick to get you to renew.

I thought the seatbelt thing was a dig at Americans, who I never mentioned, and blatant whataboutism, but whatever.

For the countries with the highest death rates (~80/million), which are poorer former Eastern Block countries, they predominantly occur in urban areas. Making cars 0.1% safer for Germans/French/Swedish, who have >50% of fatalities in the countryside, makes cars more expensive for the whole block, delaying the changeover to cars with massive safety features, like monocoque passenger safety cells, ABS/ESC and airbags.

Incidentally,10% of US fatalities occured where no seat belt was worn.[1] In the UK this was 30%, but with a quarter of the fatality rate. All you can say is that people without seat belts on die.

[1] https://www.iihs.org/topics/fatality-statistics/detail/urban...

I have to admit I don't know if you're sarcastic or not, but it certainly exists in Europe. You can have reduced rates (by quite a bit) if you install some special hardware to record how you drive.

I had no idea, I don't use any of those features. I just checked my car and it does have phone features. I'm honestly shocked. I want to get rid of the microphone.

Any car with a bluetooth setup has a microphone. That's about any car since 2005ish?

The newest car that I've had without Bluetooth hands-free was actually a 2005 BMW. But it was basically the last year facelift model based on a 90s design. I think the completely new model came out in 2006 and had Bluetooth handsfree.

It's probably way later than 2005 when pretty much every car included Bluetooth handsfree.

We have a 2011 Toyota without Bluetooth, for what it’s worth. Base trim models can skip features which are otherwise common.

Lots of cars now have microphones in them for voice commands and so on, and not just luxury vehicles. Is that what you were asking?