SACRAMENTO, Calif. — October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month and it extends past simply your private gadgets or your own home community.

A nonprofit group has a warning for drivers a couple of ‘privacy nightmare’ with new vehicles and the info they’re accumulating. It might have an effect on how a lot you pay for insurance coverage or put you in danger for monetary fraud.

Ben Sadeghipour, an moral hacker safety researcher with Savant Solutions, might need one of many coolest jobs on the market.

“I legally hack into companies for a living,” he mentioned. “16-year-old me would be very proud.”

He’s hacked into corporations like Yahoo, Amazon and Zoom — with their permission, in fact.

“I report vulnerabilities to them,” he mentioned.

And he says your automobile could possibly be a private information vulnerability for you. A brand new report warns all the flowery expertise in your car like cameras, microphones and apps could possibly be accumulating information on you. That means somebody could possibly be spying on you, monitoring you or promoting your info.

“They know your driving habits. They know the way quick you drive; they know the way rapidly you cease and the way rapidly you begin, and the record goes on,” mentioned Scott Spiro, a cybersecurity skilled and co-founder of Sugarshot.

Experts say that information could possibly be utilized by insurance coverage corporations to find out premiums, or worse, if a felony has these particulars they will interact in all varieties of fraud beneath your title. Identity theft can damage your credit score, pin you with authorized points and it is tough to battle again.

“If someone has your password, it can easily log into your account and see your whereabouts, see your behaviors, unlock your car,” mentioned Sadeghipour.

According to a brand new research launched by the Mozilla Foundation, it’s info that isn’t exhausting to get. The research discovered vehicles scored the worst for privateness amongst a dozen apps and digital gadgets studied — 19 of the 25 fashionable automobile manufacturers say they will promote drivers’ private information. Half acknowledge they’ll share your info with the federal government or legislation enforcement if requested.

The research additionally discovered 84% of automobile corporations share that info with different companies.

“My rule of thumb, especially with my car, is if I don’t need it, it is not going to be enabled,” mentioned Sadeghipour.

Delete any apps you aren’t utilizing. Some automobile corporations provide the choice to decide out of information assortment, however that would affect performance.

Remember, follow what Sadeghipour calls ‘security hygiene,’ at all times use robust passwords, replace your software program, and activate multi-factor authentication particularly in terms of something along with your deal with, social safety numbers and financial institution accounts.

WATCH MORE ON ABC10: Is getting a Costco membership worth it? | Dollars & Sense