California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced that General Motors will pay $12.8 million in civil penalties to settle charges the factory indirectly sold customer data generated by in-vehicle systems to insurance companies.

An investigation followed a series of complaints from consumers who believed their insurance policies were repriced based on driving behavior data they had not shared with their providers.

Complainants were alerted by disclosures issued by two data brokers, LexisNexis Risk Solutions and Verisk. The brokers were accused of purchasing data generated by GM’s proprietary OnStar telematics system. OnStar’s Smart Driver feature tracks speeding, fast starts and rapid deceleration.

“This trove of information included precise and personal location data that could identify the everyday habits and movements of Californians,” Bonta writes in a release announcing the settlement. “Today’s settlement requires General Motors to abandon these illegal practices and underscores the importance of the data minimization in California’s privacy law — companies can’t just hold on to data and use it later for another purpose.”

Officials note that California is among the few states in which insurance companies are barred from using driver data to set rates. Investigators determined California policyholders were not affected by the sale of their data and are not owed restitution.

Read more at CA.gov