Previously, China accused Tesla of using its electric cars to spy on the country's people. The Asian country said that the giant EV manufacturer has multiple cameras that can record any footage it wants.
The inside of a Tesla vehicle is viewed as it sits parked in a new Tesla showroom and service center in Red Hook, Brooklyn on July 5, 2016 in New York City. The electric car company and its CEO and founder Elon Musk have come under increasing scrutiny following a crash of one of its electric cars while using the controversial autopilot service. Joshua Brown crashed and died in Florida on May 7 in a Tesla car that was operating on autopilot, which means that Brown's hands were not on the steering wheel.
Because of this, the Chinese military banned Tesla electric vehicles from entering any Chinese military complexes or housing compounds. And now, Elon Musk's company clarified that China's accusation is not true.
According to PCMag's latest report, Tesla explained that the cameras it integrates into its cars are not working in China. It added that these cams are only activated if the cars are sold within the United States.
"Even in the United States, car owners can freely choose whether to turn on its (the camera system's) use," said the giant EV manufacturer. "Tesla is equipped with a network security system with world-leading security levels to ensure user privacy protection."
Elon Musk defends Tesla
Bloomberg reported that Elon Musk, Tesla's CEO, was forced to make a statement to defend its company's reputation against the accusation of China.
Tesla head Elon Musk talks to the press as he arrives to to have a look at the construction site of the new Tesla Gigafactory near Berlin on September 03, 2020 near Gruenheide, Germany. Musk is currently in Germany where he met with vaccine maker CureVac on Tuesday, with which Tesla has a cooperation to build devices for producing RNA vaccines, as well as German Economy Minister Peter Altmaier yesterday.
He said that they are ready to shut down the Tesla China plant if the camera spying accusation is true. Musk added that if his company really engages in spying, the negative effects of the activity will be extremely bad for his EV business.
As of the moment, Tesla is facing very strong competition in China since some speculations believe that there is a very cheap local brand called Hong Guan Mini EV, that is now outselling it. This might be the reason why Elon Musk decided to speak about the issue since China can easily ban the U.S. EV brand.
Are Tesla's cams alarming?
Tesla EVs' cams are not that alarming since the car owner can choose to deactivate these cameras if they want to. Aside from Elon Musk's company, General Motors and other giant car manufacturers are also using various cameras to protect their consumers when accidents happen.
You can click here for more details.
For more news updates about Elon Musk and his companies, always keep your tabs open here at TechTimes.
Related Article: Tesla EV Owners Confirm Refund on 'Double Charged' Credit Card Transactions, Adds In $200 Coupon for Online Store
This article is owned by TechTimes
Written by: Giuliano de Leon
