General Motors will pay $12.75 million after California accused the automaker of selling drivers’ location and driving data without their knowledge or consent.

The settlement, announced by California attorney general Rob Bonta, centers on claims that GM illegally sold data from hundreds of thousands of Californians to two data brokers. State officials say the information went beyond basic vehicle metrics and included precise location details that could reveal the daily routines and movements of drivers.

“General Motors sold the data of California drivers without their knowledge or consent,” California attorney general Rob Bonta said, adding that the information could identify drivers’ everyday habits and movements.

The case cuts deeper because, according to the attorney general, GM had made repeated assurances that it would not share that kind of information. That gap between public promises and reported business practices now sits at the heart of the state’s complaint: not just that data changed hands, but that drivers may have had little reason to think it would.

Key Facts

  • General Motors agreed to pay $12.75 million to resolve California’s claims.
  • State officials say GM sold location and driving data from hundreds of thousands of Californians.
  • Reports indicate the data went to two data brokers.
  • California says drivers did not know about or consent to the sales.

The settlement lands at a moment of growing scrutiny over how connected cars collect, store, and monetize personal information. Modern vehicles generate a steady stream of data, and regulators have signaled that companies cannot treat that information like a hidden side business when it maps where people go and how they live. For consumers, the dispute underscores a basic question: who really controls the data a car produces?

What comes next matters well beyond one automaker. California’s action could push car companies to tighten disclosure, consent, and data-sharing practices, while drivers and regulators look more closely at what connected vehicles transmit behind the dashboard. The broader fight now moves from this settlement to the industry itself.