2023-08-02 12:04:10
Tesla-Showroom in Peking
Informants accuse the electric car manufacturer of insufficiently protecting the data of its customers and employees.
(Photo: Reuters)
Düsseldorf, Berlin According to the world’s largest electric car manufacturer Tesla, a data leak that became known at the end of May could have a negative impact on the company’s business. The group, headquartered in Austin, points this out in its recently submitted quarterly report to the US Securities and Exchange Commission public for the first time.
Specifically, the notice can be found in the “Certain Investigations and Other Matters” section. Tesla names the data leak there in a series of investigations by the SEC and the US Department of Justice against CEO Elon Musk and the company.
Tesla warns investors at the end of the section that an “adverse development” in any of these cases could result in a “material adverse impact” — affecting Tesla’s “business, results of operations, prospects, cash flow, financial condition or our brand”.
“Tesla files”: More than 100 gigabytes of data
As a new risk, Tesla cites in the report to the SEC that a “foreign news outlet” reported in the second quarter that it “came into possession of certain misappropriated data” from Tesla — including “allegedly non-public business and personal information.”
At the end of May, the Handelsblatt reported for the first time on the “Tesla Files”, a data package of more than 100 gigabytes that informants passed on to the editorial team. The more than 23,000 files contain a lot of confidential information – including personal data of customers and employees.
The insiders claim that many employees were able to access this information. That would violate the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). It stipulates that personal data within a company may only be viewed by employees who need it for their work.
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Now European supervisory authorities are dealing with the case. “The state commissioner has serious indications of possible data protection violations by the automotive group Tesla,” said a spokesman for Dagmar Hartge, the state data protection officer in Brandenburg.
Hartge has also informed the Dutch data protection authority because Tesla’s European headquarters are in Amsterdam. The authority in The Hague must now decide on the next steps. When asked, she does not comment on the ongoing proceedings “so as not to disturb the process”.
Also read about the Tesla files:
Tesla says in the report to the SEC that the internal investigation is ongoing. The company has accused a “disgruntled ex-employee” of using his service technician access to smuggle information out of the group. According to Tesla, it is cooperating with law enforcement agencies.
Violations of data protection rules can be expensive. The GDPR provides for fines of up to four percent of global annual sales. At Tesla, that would be up to $3.26 billion for 2022.
More: Ex-employee says he warned Tesla about data leak early on
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