New Toll Data Collection Tool A Privacy Risk?

The implementation of this toll collection system, which will eventually eradicate toll booths, necessitates the fitting of an on-board unit (OBU) in every vehicle that can track a vehicle's location in real time.

Amid concerns over data privacy in the proposed GPS-based toll collection system, also known as Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) toll collection, highways secretary Anurag Jain has clarified that data collection will only be limited to national highways.

The implementation of this toll collection system, which will eventually eradicate toll booths, necessitates the fitting of an on-board unit (OBU) in every vehicle that can track a vehicle's location in real time.

The Centre will eventually mandate OBUs in every vehicle.

"On data privacy, we are absolutely clear. Your signal will be captured the moment you enter the national highway, and the moment you exit, your signal will stop being captured," Jain told Business Standard during a media interaction on Thursday.

On concerns whether stakeholders involved in the transaction such as OBU manufacturers, banks, and insurers could access real-time location data at all times, and not just on national highways, Jain said, "They'll have a contractual obligation with us (not to track at all times)."

"Data about the whereabouts of vehicles on national highways is collected by us even today, since vehicles are passing through toll gates. Just that it is an anonymised and aggregated form," the secretary told Business Standard.

In commercial vehicles, even fleet owners track their vehicles through the unified logistics interface platform (ULIP), he said.

Any data sharing in GPS-based systems would have to honour data protection regulations.

"Whenever an IT system is built, a grievance redress mechanism is built in tandem with it. We have built systems like UPI and ONDC with efficiency," Jain said.

He was addressing concerns of technological issues or vulnerabilities causing inconvenience to vehicle owners.

Government sources said that the ministry is currently undertaking detailed studies on European and other countries where GPS-based toll collection is in force, and trying to assess the feasibility of the policy on commercial vehicles vis a vis passenger vehicles, keeping in mind data sharing issues as well.

Ever since Union Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari first announced plans for location-based toll collection across the country, experts have raised concerns overt data privacy and the scope for misuse.

"GPS location data of cars or other vehicles is of course not purely non-personal data. It cannot be divorced from the person driving that vehicle or in that vehicle.

"This is because it is geolocation data of the person also. And, the car is also able to amass a lot of other personal information too.

"You sometimes sync your contact with the inbuilt system inside the car. So, there are many ways in which a car manufacturer can amass data from you.

"It's not purely non-personal data, and there is an implication for individuals," Disha Verma, working for the Internet Freedom Foundation, had told this paper in June.

The ministry has also constituted an expert committee to deal with issues of data privacy which may arise.

In a discussion paper on Telematics Insurance, the non-life department of the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) had foreseen issues of privacy.

"When an insured switches from one company to another, there could be issues relating to portability of data -- the newer company may refuse to take cognizance of previous data.

"There could also be issues surrounding privacy of data and what data can be shared and what cannot. Implementing telematics would involve cost. The cost would need to be integrated into the pricing structure," the Irdai had said.

Feature Presentation: Ashish Narsale/Rediff.com