The Netherlands Has No Tesla Fines For Privacy Violations Regarding Vehicle Security Cameras

JAKARTA - The Dutch personal data protection authority announced on Wednesday 22 February that it would not impose a fine on Tesla Inc. for a possible privacy breach after the US automaker made changes to its vehicle security cameras.

Tesla used the camera in its car to help its owner protect the car from theft or vandalism, but the Dutch Data Protection Authority (DPA) investigated it as a potential violation.

"Most Tesla cars parked on the road often record everyone approaching their vehicle, and these pictures are kept for a very long time. If every car does, we will have a situation where no one can go to public places unsupervised," said DPA board member Katja Mur, in a statement.

Meanwhile, Tesla itself could not immediately be reached for comment on the matter.

The agency said Tesla had made changes to the "Sentry Mode" feature where the camera was activated from the start of the DPA investigation. The changes includehauling car headlights to signal pedestrians that the recording had started and required approval from the car owner to start recording.

"The film was recorded and stored in the car, and not shared with Tesla," said DPA.

As a result, car owners, not Tesla, will be legally responsible for inappropriate recording. "The DPA investigation did not result in fines or other sanctions for Tesla," the agency said.