Car tracking features for ‘convenience not safety’ Kia warns

“Kia Connect is a customer convenience feature, not a proven safety vehicle tracker,” the company told the BBC.

“Therefore, it does not provide live tracking functionality for stolen vehicles.

“Vehicle location details can be released by Kia Connect, but this must be done in full compliance with all applicable laws, particularly GDPR, and regulatory authorities to minimize risk to the customer.”

The GPDR is the European data protection law, and a similar version applies in the UK.

According to Britain’s data watchdog, the Information Commissioner’s Office, consumers have a right to access their data and organizations must respond to a request from a person who can identify them within a month.

In the case of a standard vehicle theft, the police do not have formal powers to request this information unless there is specific permission from the Home Office, which the BBC understands is rarely required in these cases.

It is up to individual car manufacturers to share information with law enforcement according to their respective policies.

Kia offers a safety vehicle tracking service in the US for subscribers who take out the Premium package, but this is not available in the UK or Europe.