The Wisconsin DOJ has reached a landmark $220 million settlement with General Motors

The Wisconsin Department of Justice, alongside a multi-state coalition, has reached a landmark $220 million settlement with General Motors (GM) following allegations that the automaker unlawfully collected and sold drivers' private location and behavioral data to third-party data brokers and insurance companies. Out of the total settlement amount, Wisconsin is slated to receive $5.12 million. Under the agreement, GM is strictly required to obtain affirmative express consent from consumers before gathering or sharing any driving or location information.

Investigative findings revealed that between 2016 and 2024, GM enrolled millions of vehicle owners in its Smart Driver feature—often during the vehicle purchase process at dealerships where employees frequently accepted terms without explicit customer consent. Although pitched as a safety tool, GM provided this sensitive driving data to brokers under contracts designed for insurance product integration. Consequently, insurers used metrics such as speed, braking habits, and trip times to adjust driver premiums, frequently without the knowledge or consent of the policyholders.

Systemic errors further compounded the issue, as the OnStar application incorrectly informed over 370,000 users that they were not enrolled in tracking while their data was actively being gathered and monetized. Following public exposure of these practices, GM terminated the Smart Driver program. Beyond the monetary penalties, the settlement mandates robust privacy protections, including mandatory internal and external privacy assessments, comprehensive data minimization, and mandatory dealership compliance training.