Tesla promises to store data from cars sold in China in the country to avoid suspicions of espionage

Tesla has announced the creation of a data center in China to process and store data from Tesla electric vehicles sold in China. The company announced this on its page on the local social network Weibo .

The company made this decision shortly after the Chinese government decided to ban military and government employees from using Tesla cars for certain trips, The Verge writes. The ban included driving Tesla electric cars to work and driving them into residential complexes for employees of secret enterprises and government agencies.

"The security of data collected from vehicles is very important. All data from vehicles sold in China will be stored in China," Tesla said.

The media reported that the ban on the use of electric cars was introduced following an inspection that showed that the cameras installed on them can record continuously, and the sensors can collect various data. In particular, this concerns access to the contact list on the owner's smartphone after synchronizing the device with the Tesla multimedia system. The Chinese authorities also do not rule out that some of the data collected by electric cars may be transferred to the United States.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has denied that the company's electric vehicle cameras and sensors are being used for spying. "If a commercial company were actually engaged in spying, the negative consequences for that company would be extremely serious," Musk said in March. "If Tesla were using cars to spy on China or any other country, we would be shut down," he added.

Tesla opened its first overseas factory in China in late 2019, where it now produces the Model 3 and Model Y electric vehicles. The plant is the first wholly foreign-owned car assembly plant in China.

Experts have repeatedly drawn attention to the potential problems of the spread of "smart" cars equipped with cameras and various sensors. Such cars collect large amounts of data, and their leaks can threaten the privacy of owners and the national security of states. In 2019, cybersecurity experts found out that used and accident-involved Tesla cars store many of their former owners' data in unencrypted form.