Smart cars being weaponised in domestic violence cases
Australia’s online safety boss has warned that abusers are increasingly turning to smart cars to unleash violence and control over their victims.
Frontline service providers say there has been an increase in reports of coercive checks through smart cars connected to apps and cloud accounts that can start the engine, send alerts and track the vehicle’s location.
Last year the eSafety Commission received 400 calls for help and 20,000 requests for information about smart car misuse, prompting new online security advice to warn potential victims of new threats.
The commission also called on manufacturers to build more safety features into their systems, as 90 per cent of all cars sold in Australia will have telematics systems by 2031.
“These are essentially computers on wheels and we don’t want them to become guns on wheels,” eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant told reporters in Canberra on Monday. he said.
“They already have GPS, you can control the car remotely, lock it or start it. You can prevent an EV from charging.
“These are all things that happen to Australian women.”
Sue Webeck, chief executive of Domestic Violence Crisis Support, said this type of abuse was “insidious” and significantly altered a person’s experience of safety, putting them at risk even if they relocated.
“We are being sold products that will allow us to take control of our lives on a chronic basis,” he said.
“What is also being marketed is as a tool that people who are violent towards their former partners can use to gain power and control.”
Ms. Inman Grant said automakers should have a responsibility to detect abuses, adding that she would meet with Toyota this week.
“We have seen in the US that General Motors and Rivian are allowing some people to go into ghost mode so that their location cannot be tracked,” he said.
Ms Inman Grant said abusers had also weaponised cat feeders with video cameras that could keep track of who was in the house, and smart fridges were remotely locked so food could not be accessed.
The coroner’s findings into the death of Lilie James, who was murdered by Paul Thijssen in Sydney, revealed how he used Uber Eats to send chocolate ice cream to a previous love interest to keep track of whether she was home or not.
Ms Inman Grant said even a fire emoji could appear as a threat, showing just how much covert abuse facilitated by technology could be.
“If a woman goes to the police and says, ‘I’m getting these threatening messages’ and the police see a flame emoji, that means hotness,” Ms Inman Grant said.
“But when a former partner threatens to burn down the family home, it has a very different meaning – it is a threat.”
