In 2012, Massachusetts voters overwhelmingly passed (87%!) an automotive #RightToRepair ballot initiative, but in the years since, car-makers have brutally sabotaged it, prompting another ballot initiative that'll be before voters in Nov.

https://ballotpedia.org/Massachusetts_%22Right_to_Repair%22_Initiative,_Question_1_(2012)

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The 2012 rule requires car companies to provide independent mechanics with an interface to access the diagnostic info from the car's CAN bus, but not from wireless interfaces within the car. So now the automakers just send all the good stuff wirelessly.

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Question 1 - the Mass ballot initiative - just closes that loophole, requiring the manufacturers to provide mechanics with whatever they need to access this wireless diagnostic data.

Naturally, the car makers are FREAKING OUT.

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They've launched an absolutely BUGFUCK attack ad that says that if cars are designed to let independent mechanics fix them, stalkers will buy used cars, extract potential victims' data from them, and MURDER THEM.

https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/qj4ayw/auto-industry-tv-ads-claim-right-to-repair-benefits-sexual-predators

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The ads are paid for by "The Coalition for Safe and Secure Data," a front for "The Alliance for Automotive Innovation" a front for (who else?) the car manufacturers.

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But when this is pointed out to them, they say, "Oh yeah! Well, GUESS WHO IS PAYING FOR QUESTION ONE?! IT IS THE AUTO CARE ASSOCIATION! DUNH DUNH DUUUUUUUHN!"

You will not be amazed to learn that the Auto Care Assoc represents independent mechanics.

DUNH DUNH DUUUUUHN.

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For his excellent @Motherboard story on the ads, @mjgault points out that you should REALLY reset your car's onboard systems before you sell it or give it away.

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He quotes @paulfroberts from @securerepairs who makes the even better point that if your car has a bunch of data that's useful to stalkers, it's only because the car manufacturers have turned cars into rolling surveillance platforms that spy on their drivers CONSTANTLY.

8/

Which is a pretty good point.

If Big Car is worried that used vehicles are full of nonconsensually collected kompromat, maybe they could, you know, just stop collecting all that data?

eof/