Ford Patents Tattletale Cars

Somewhere, George Orwell is looking down at us, shaking his head and saying, “I told you so; I tried to warn you.”

Surveillance of all types is creeping into our lives and being used to eliminate our privacy, our rights, and turn us into a police state. Ford is doing its part by creating cars that can tell on you or your neighbor if you are speeding.

Motor Authority first reported that the company had filed for a patent in January 2023. Called “Systems and Methods for Detecting Speeding Violations,” the patent was awarded by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) on July 18 of this year.

They reported:

“In the application, Ford discusses using cars to monitor each other’s speeds. If one car detects that a nearby vehicle is being driven above the posted limit, it could use onboard cameras to photograph that vehicle. A report containing both speed data and images of the targeted vehicle could then be sent directly to a police car or roadside monitoring units via an Internet connection, according to Ford.”

“Using vehicles for speed surveillance would make cops’ jobs easier, as they wouldn’t have to quickly identify speeding violations and take off in pursuit, Ford notes in the application. It also means some of that work could be delegated to self-driving cars, which could be equipped to detect speeding violations, the automaker adds.”

The patent seems to be deliberately vague. Some interpret its use to be meant for only police vehicles, others aren’t so sure. Automobile outlet Driving made note that the patent vaguely says the transmission of these records and driving data to police “seems to relegate only to instances where the snitching car is also “a law enforcement vehicle,” though elsewhere in the patent, it broadens that definition to cover, in some cases, “any of various types of vehicles operated by various types of agencies,” including those driven by an “emergency services responder” or “private security officer.”’

The expression “give an inch, and they’ll take a mile” means that someone will take advantage of you if you make a small concession. This seems like the type of situation where if you allow this type of hardware to be installed, “supposedly” on law enforcement vehicles only, it will soon find its way to private vehicles.

Matthew Guy noted in an update

Nevertheless, Driver called this “dystopian.” Guy adds, ‘We think it is at this point any reasonable outlet is obliged to quote Jeff Goldblum’s character Ian Malcolm from Jurassic Park: “Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn’t stop to think if they should.”’

The Drive also expressed concern, stating:

“You don’t need us to sound alarms over the implicit slipperiness of this slope, potentially mobilizing non-police cars to snitch on the rest of the public.”

In a statement to Motor Authority, a Ford spokesman said:

“The patent explicitly states this idea is specific for application in law enforcement vehicles, such as the Ford Police Interceptor, and it’s a system that would automate a capability that law enforcement already have in use today, except this would utilize the built-in system and sensors in the vehicle.

The patent does not indicate that driving data from customers’ vehicles would be shared with law enforcement, despite some incorrect reports in the media. It’s important to note that patent applications aim to protect new ideas and may not necessarily reflect new business or product plans.”

Motor Authority acknowledges the vagueness of the patent wording. They claim that:

“reading of the patent leaves unanswered questions about the limit and scope of its language, which seems to leave law enforcement use as one of many possible use cases.”

The patent reads:

“Traffic police typically face various types of challenges when dealing with speeding violations. Among these challenges is a need to quickly and accurately identify a speeding vehicle and take responsive action.”

“It is desirable to provide systems and methods that assist traffic police and/or other law enforcement officers perform such tasks.”

“The image may be evaluated for determining at least one identifying feature of the second vehicle,” Ford explains in the patent. 

So, if your car spotted a nearby car breaking the speed limit, it could photograph that vehicle and send the snap directly to the police. 

“The image may be evaluated for determining at least one identifying feature of the second vehicle. The record can include the speed measurement, the image, and the first identifying feature.”

“In some cases, the record may be transmitted to another law-enforcement vehicle for pursuing the second vehicle and/or an Internet-of-Things road-side unit for tracking the second vehicle.”

The leftists at Ford will try and convince the public that everything they’re doing is for the benefit of the people. Trust me, it isn’t. This is another crack for them to slither in through and another chance to cause division by turning people against each other.