Through devices like mobile phones, we connect with the world around using wireless communication technology. Your Ford connected vehicle lets you do the same.
The Vehicle Data may be disclosed to us, our dealers and our related companies and is used for product research and improvement, and other purposes disclosed in this Connected Vehicle Privacy Policy.
To understand how, let’s begin with an explanation of how the technology works.
FordPass Connect is a cellular modem containing an e-SIM which enables your Ford vehicle to connect to the internet, much like a mobile device with an e-SIM. The cellular modem is embedded in the vehicle and just like other parts of a vehicle, is fitted at the factory.
When you take delivery of the vehicle, the modem is connected to the cellular network and sending certain limited data to us and our cloud service providers (based in the United States of America). Examples of data that will be sent to us includes (i) basic vehicle information (e.g. vehicle identification number (VIN), Electronic Serial Number (ESN))of your FordPass Connect modem, SIM serial number (ICCID), vehicle model, model year, FordPass Connect modem serial numbers, local time etc.), (ii) diagnostic data (e.g. diagnostic trouble codes), vehicle maintenance data (e.g. engine oil life, engine temperature, fuel consumption, tire pressure, etc), and (iii) other information about the usage and performance of vehicles, features, and technology (collectively, “Vehicle Data”). Please find more details as below.
Your Ford vehicle may also be connected through the in-vehicle SYNC system (“SYNC 4”), Wi-Fi or AppLink technologies. Learn more on our website or in your owner’s manual.
AppLink (if equipped)
You may be able to use AppLink to connect your mobile apps with SYNC 4. Your mobile device shall be able to provide the data connection to connect your mobile apps with SYNC 4 (which mobile data charges may apply) and SYNC 4 provide the infotainment integration, including voice controls (if applicable).
To enable connection with mobiles apps in your mobile device, SYNC 4 requires your consent to send and receive information and updates authorised by your mobile app in your connected mobile device. Upon your consent, your connected device will send the relevant encrypted data (such as the VIN, SYNC module serial number of other component identifier, odometer, usage statistics and debugging information) to us. When the vehicle is not in driving mode, you may be able to use the setting menu to grant group permissions individually, change a permission group status, and view the data included in each group, if equipped. When you launch an app using SYNC 4, the system may ask you to grant certain permissions, for example information about the vehicle, such as Vehicle Data, Driving Data, Vehicle Location, Convenience Controls, and/or Push Notifications. Please be aware that the permission selections available to you may vary based on which version of SYNC 4 is equipped in your vehicle. You can enable or disable all groups permission during the initial app permissions prompts. Please view the owner’s manual for more information. Please note that you are only prompted to grant permission the first time when you launch an app by using SYNC 4. We recommend you review the terms and conditions and privacy policies of third-party app or service to which you subscribe and/or use. We take no responsibility for any apps or services provided by third party, including their use of any data. If you choose to share information about your vehicle through your use of third-party apps or services, the third party’s terms and conditions and privacy policies (and not the Ford Privacy Policy) may apply to the shared information.
- Software Updates: Enables Ford to conduct software updates to your vehicle’s FordPass Connect modem (If available).
- It does not update your SYNC 4 , nor any other vehicle system. You can update your SYNC system, by connecting to a Wi-Fi network, and downloading latest SYNC software update (If available).
- Deep Sleep Mode: Your connected vehicle includes a protective feature known as Deep Sleep mode. Deep Sleep mode is triggered on a connected vehicle after approximately 14 days of inactivity to prevent vehicle battery drain. In most cases, this issue can be resolved by an one-hour drive at highway speeds, or between 1,500 and 3,000 RPM. While driving, refrain from using electronics inside the vehicle (radio, phone charger, etc.) can often recharge batteries successfully. Connected Services cannot operate during Deep Sleep Mode.
If your vehicle’s FordPass Connect modem or your FordPass App cannot connect to the telecommunications network (for example, due to poor signal strength or data service interruptions), the Connected Services cannot operate.
Note: The FordPass Connect modem fitted to your vehicle will only work with the 3G/4G telecommunications networks. When these networks are no longer available, the FordPass Connect modem will stop functioning and the Connected Services and all data transmission via the FordPass Connect modem will cease.
The telecommunications services for the connected vehicle are provided by our third-party service providers. Due to security and compliance issues, you may be requested to comply with their requests from time to time, including the obligation relating to SIM card registration and verification.
The timing of when the Vehicle data is sent varies. For example:
- Maintenance data is sent every time you take a trip.
- Diagnostic data is sent when a problem is detected, and a signal is triggered and sent to Ford.
- Sometimes specific vehicle data is “pulled”. This may be as a result of a product development or quality improvement query.
In a vehicle fitted with a FordPass Connect modem, you will see an icon displayed on the in-vehicle SYNC screen which appears as:
- You can leave your FordPass Connect modem as is, that is partially activated, and the vehicle will continue to send diagnostic and maintenance data as described above. This state will continue unless you actively turn off ‘Vehicle Connectivity’ via your in-vehicle SYNC system in your car.
- You can turn off ‘Vehicle Connectivity’ via your in-vehicle SYNC system in your Ford and therefore, the sending of data from your vehicle’s modem will cease. A more detailed description of how to de-activate your modem through a reset is given below.
Vehicle Connectivity
- When ‘on’, the vehicle is connected to the cellular network service and Software Updates, if available, and Vehicle Data is being shared.
- When ‘off’, the vehicle is not connected to the cellular network, no information is shared via the vehicle, no connected services will work.
Share Vehicle Data
- When ‘on’, the vehicle is sharing data such as status, performance, and diagnostics of vehicle systems (like warning lights, fuel consumption, tire pressure).
- When ‘off’, the vehicle is not sharing the information and connected services that need Vehicle Data will not work.
- When you turn ‘on’, you mean you agree for Vehicle Data to be transmitted to Ford. Then, all connected features including Remote Start; Remote Lock/Unlock; Vehicle Health Status and Alerts are functioned and displayed on your FordPass App.
- When ‘on’, the vehicle is sharing anonymous information about the usage and performance of vehicle features, services, and technology (for example, which features are used).
- When ‘off’, the vehicle is not sharing the information.
- Vehicle Connectivity
- Share Vehicle data
If you share your vehicle with others, please tell them about your settings of Connected Vehicle Features. For example, let them know where they can find the information needed to turn off the data sharing in the Settings menu in the SYNC 4 infotainment system. You are responsible for ensuring that anyone you share your vehicle with is aware of the Connected Vehicle Features and have read and understood the Ford Connected Vehicle Terms and Privacy Policy and provided their written consent (if required) to our collection, use and/or disclosure of personal data when they are using your vehicle.
In-vehicle icons and data sharing popups indicate Connected Vehicle Information is being shared.
Drivers and passengers without a mobile device or with a mobile device which has not been paired with the SYNC 4 infotainment system, or if someone is new to your vehicle, or not driving it enough to pair their mobile device, they will see a pop-up displayed in-vehicle alerting them to the current data sharing settings and the type of connected vehicle information that is being shared via the vehicle.
Prior to selling or transferring ownership of the vehicle, you must : (a) complete a Reset (see below for instructions); (b) remove imported personal data including but not limited to contact lists, names of paired devices ; and (c) return the vehicle to the default factory settings. This is much like wiping your mobile phone memory when you upgrade to a new device. And, don’t forget to do a Master Reset when you buy an used vehicle equipped with a FordPass Connect modem.
There are two types of Reset which may display in your vehicle:
- FordPass Connect Reset: Resets the modem only.
- Master Reset: Resets modem and SYNC infotainment system.
A. FordPass Connect Reset
A FordPass Connect modem reset will reset the modem settings to the factory default (i.e. partially activated/partial modem activation).
All other SYNC 4 settings, such as paired devices, phone book, and stored addresses will be retained.
A FordPass Connect Modem Reset can only be performed in vehicle.
To perform a FordPass Connect Modem Reset:
- Sitting in your Ford vehicle, turn the vehicle on and select Settings in the feature bar at the bottom of the SYNC home screen.
- Select General. You may need to swipe to the next screen.
- Scroll down and select Reset.
- Select FordPass Connect Reset.
- Select Reset All.
- A message confirming that all FordPass Connect settings will be reset to factory defaults will appear. Select Continue.
- The FordPass Connect Reset is now complete.
B. Master Reset Instructions
A Master Reset will reset the modem settings as described above and all SYNC 4 settings. It will erase all SYNC 4 stored data including paired devices, phone book, call histories, and stored addresses.
A Master Reset can only be performed in vehicle and should be performed prior to transferring ownership of your vehicle.
To perform a Master Reset
- Sitting in the car, turn the vehicle on and select Settings in the feature bar at the bottom of the SYNC 4 home screen.
- Select General. You may need to swipe to the next screen.
- Scroll down and select Reset.
- Select Master Reset.
- A message confirming that all system settings will be reset to factory defaults will appear. Select Continue.
- The Master Reset is now complete.
We commit to managing your personal data fairly and in accordance with our privacy policies and the provisions as contained in The Malaysian Personal Data Protection Act 2010 (Privacy Act). Where connected vehicle information (discussed in detail below), is associated with your vehicle’s VIN and linked to you, Ford will manage this as personal data.
You can find out about our privacy practices more generally at https://ford.simemotors.my/privacy-disclaimer.
We may use and/or disclose your personal data:
- for the purposes for which we collected it (and related purposes which would be reasonably expected by you);
- for other purposes to which you have consented to;
- as otherwise permitted or required by law; and
- for other legal requirement that we can rely on under the Privacy Act.
In general, we collect, use and/or disclose your personal data so that we can do business with you and contact you about our products and services, and for purposes connected with our business operations.
Some of the specific purposes for which we collect, use and/or disclose personal data are:
- to allow you to control certain vehicle features and to provide you with Connected Services;
- to fulfil your requests and deal with your enquiries;
- to personalise your experience and the communications you receive;
- to manage and improve our business and our relationship with you;
- to assess the quality of the services we and our dealers provide, and the services our suppliers provide to us or on our behalf;
- to provide over-the-air updates to the FordPass Connect modem (If available);
- for troubleshooting purposes;
- to carry out remote diagnostics activities;
- to predict which Ford products or services could be of interest to you;
- to conduct research and develop new and improved products, services, and business and marketing strategies; and
- to detect, prevent, or otherwise address fraud, security, safety, or privacy issues.
We may also use and disclose your personal data for the purpose of direct marketing to you where you have opted in to receive any marketing materials from us, or it is otherwise permitted by Privacy Act. Direct marketing involves communicating directly with you for the purpose of promoting goods or services to you. Direct marketing can be delivered by a range of methods including mail, telephone, email, SMS or in-app notifications. You can unsubscribe from our direct marketing, or change your contact preferences, by contacting us.
Below are the types of connected vehicle information we collect and the purposes for which the data may be used. Based on the level of connectivity you choose for your vehicle and the Connected Services you use, we may collect and use all or some of the connected vehicle information described below. Information may be transmitted to us remotely through FordPass Connect, AppLink, Wi-Fi or obtained directly from the vehicle at service visits.
No one can guarantee data transmission over the Internet to be secure, but we, our service providers and partners take data and cyber security very seriously, especially in relation to your personal data.
We use a variety of technical, administrative, and physical security measures to help protect and maintain the security, integrity and availability of connected vehicle data.
Ford has a connected vehicle cyber security team and puts in place various technical and organisational security measures to protect connected vehicle data, including access controls to limit unnecessary or unauthorized access to, loss, alternation, correction or disclosure of connected vehicle data, in compliance with Privacy Act, as well as cyber security measures such as hashing and encrypting data.
Ford has implemented access control measures and the use of data storage and processing devices which are secured and suitable for the collection, use, and/or disclosure of personal data. We restrict access to personal data as well as storage and processing devices by imposing access rights or permission, allowing only authorized individuals to access personal data, and implement user responsibilities to prevent unauthorized access, disclosure, perception, unlawful duplication of personal data or theft of storage or processing devices. We also have appropriate measures to enable the re-examination of access, alteration, deletion, or transfer of personal data.
We may share connected vehicle data/information with:
- our related companies;
- companies or other organisations that we have engaged to provide services for, or in connection with, us (including mailing vendors, marketing agencies, roadside assistance providers, analytics providers, event hosting services, website and data hosting providers and other information technology providers, for trend analysis, for market research, for promotions and for the provision of statistical sales information to industry bodies);
- companies or other organisations where you have asked us to or agreed that we may share your personal data with them;
- companies or other organisations where we believe you may have a genuine interest in their services and/or products;
- dealers and our partners where this is necessary to provide you with a product or service, including, for example, our telecommunications network providers;
- professional advisors;
- any law enforcement agency, court, regulator, government authority or other third party (e.g., our telecommunications network providers) where we believe sharing the connected vehicle data/information is necessary for us to comply with our legal or regulatory obligations, or otherwise to protect our rights, the rights of any third party or any individuals' personal safety, or to detect, prevent, or otherwise address fraud, security or safety issues; and
- any third party that purchases, or to which we transfer, all or substantially all of our assets and/or business.
When we share your personal data with third parties, we will do so only in the circumstances outlined above, or in a manner otherwise consistent with the provisions under the Privacy Act.
The parties to whom we disclose and/or transfer personal data include parties located outside Malaysia. Connected vehicle data may be transferred from the FordPass Connect modem to Ford in the United States of America (USA). When this occurs, the data is stored in Ford’s data processing and storage locations including Ford servers and third-party cloud infrastructure, all located in the USA. In the ordinary course of business, we commonly transfer personal data to companies in the Ford Motor Company Group located in the USA and India where our Ford group data and business centres are located and to our overseas service providers located in the USA.
By virtue of the aforesaid, the Ford Motor Company Group located in USA and India with their overseas service providers located in the USA will have their respective specific privacy policies in relation to their processing, use and retention of personal data. In consideration that their respective privacy policies are controlled by the relevant Ford Motor Company Group in the said countries and the overseas service providers, we:-
- have no control nor the ability to control/influence how the relevant Ford Motor Company Group and their overseas service providers use, manage and/or retain personal data.
- shall not be held responsible for the Ford Motor Company Group and their overseas service providers in relation to their processing, use and/or retention of personal data.
Except where an exception applies under the Privacy Act, we will take reasonable steps to ensure that we are permitted to transfer personal data in accordance with the Privacy Act. We may for example, obtain contractual assurance from any recipients of personal data to ensure that your personal data will be protected by personal data protection standards which are equivalent to those required under the Privacy Act as well as to ensure that they will not violate the provisions in the Privacy Act.
We keep your personal data for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes set out above. However, we may retain your personal data for a longer duration if we need to comply with Privacy Act and regulations, our internal policies, operational rules or, when necessary, when a dispute occurs.
Once connected vehicle data is no longer needed by us for any reason, it is either irreversibly anonymised or destroyed. Where data has been irreversibly anonymised, Ford may retain it and use it for any purpose as necessary.
Subject to the conditions prescribed by Privacy Act and our data subject rights management procedures, you may have the following rights.
- Access. You may have the right to access or request a copy of your personal data that we collect, use, or disclose.
- Rectification. You may have the right to request the personal data that we collect, use, and/or disclose about you is corrected, updated, completed, and not misleading.
- Data Portability. You may have the right to obtain personal data we hold about you in a structured, and readable electronic format, and to transmit such data to another data controller.
- Objection. You may have the right to object to certain collection, use, and/or disclosure of your personal data to the extent permitted under Privacy Act.
- Restriction. You may have the right to restrict our use of your personal data in some cases.
- Withdrawal of consent. For the purposes where you have provided your consent for our collection, use, and/or disclosure of your personal data, you may have the right to withdraw your consent in some cases.
- Deletion. You may have the right to request us to delete, destroy, or anonymize your personal data that we collected, used, or disclosed.
If you have any questions, concerns or complaints about our collection, use and/or disclosure of personal data, or if you believe that we have not complied with this policy or the Privacy Act, please contact us.
We will take any complaint seriously and any complaint will be assessed by an appropriate person with the aim of resolving any issue in a timely and efficient manner. We request that you cooperate with us during this process and provide us with any relevant information that we may need.
If you are not satisfied with the outcome of our assessment of your complaint, you may wish to contact the Personal Data Protection Commission.
If you have questions or concerns regarding our use of your information, or would like to exercise any of your rights, you may reach out to our Customer Relations Department by:-
- calling telephone number: 1300 383 181; or
- sending an email to customercare.sdac@simedarby.com; or
- sending a letter to us at Sime Darby Auto ConneXion Sdn Bhd, Ford at Level 3, Block 2, Sime Darby Motors City, Pusat Automotif Sime Darby, No.6, Jalan PJU 1A/7, Ara Damansara, 47301 Petaling Jaya, Selangor.
For Aftersales / Parts / Warranty enquiries, contact our Customer Care Centre at 1300 383 181 Monday – Friday 9AM to 5PM (excluding public holidays) or email customercare.sdac@simedarby.com.
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