IF YOU DRIVE, THEY'RE TRACKING YOU

Automated license plate readers that track every single license plate they see and often store the data indefinitely have become a hot topic lately. The databases of information, which includes every sighting of a particular plate (i.e. you) over long periods of time can be viewed much like Google maps. Hope you didn't park in front of a crack den when you went out for milk.

Your new fingerprint. Via Wikimedia Commons.

The ACLU has been blasting not only the surveillance of innocent (though assumed-guilty) citizens, but also the varying retention policies of law enforcement offices. A few discard the info after a few days, some hold onto it for years (you never know when a "good guy" could turn out to actually be a "bad guy"), and others don't see a reason to have a policy at all. They have a page on their site dedicated to ALPR systems and a report in PDF format.

But what else can we do to protect our privacy against a government who continues to expand its powers? (And on a side note, do you trust the government to keep all the data it has on you safe?) While we haven't used it, you may want to invest in the NoPhoto license plate frame.

Or maybe you should never drive ever again, at least not in America.