The government's surveillance of electric car drivers has sparked a debate about privacy and data protection. Millions of electric vehicle (EV) owners had their mobile phone activity monitored by the government, according to newly released documents. The Department for Transport (DfT) paid O2 £600,000 to track 25 million mobile devices as part of research into EV adoption and usage patterns. This two-year scheme swept up customers of O2 and networks operating on its infrastructure, including Sky Mobile, Tesco Mobile, GiffGaff, and Virgin Mobile. The tracking methods used mirror techniques typically deployed by law enforcement to investigate drug trafficking and organized crime.
The program flagged anyone who visited EV-related websites or apps at least once a month across two separate months as a potential electric vehicle owner. It captured browsing data from children as well as adults and included passengers as well as drivers. Once identified, individuals had their movements across Britain tracked using mobile network data. The information was then supplied to officials in what was described as "anonymised and aggregated" form. However, the department later conceded the exercise had significant limitations, acknowledging that "mobile data cannot directly be used to provide information around charging behavior or travel time".
The scheme was commissioned under the Conservative government and concluded in April 2024, shortly before Labour came to power. Civil servants in the DfT's Advanced Analytics Division and Social and Behavioural Research unit secured funding for the project in 2023. Its stated aim was "to support evaluation of initiatives targeting electric vehicle uptake and usage". Officials focused in particular on movements in London, the north west and east of England. The government has since introduced a pay-per-mile tax for electric vehicles, with mileage verified through annual MOT checks.
While some officials defended the scheme, others criticized it. A Labour source sought to distance Sir Keir Starmer's administration from the scheme, telling The Telegraph it was a "bizarre attempt to create a nanny state for motorists". Conservative MP Sir David Davis condemned the operation, saying "It's an object lesson in why you can't trust the state with unfettered access to people's information, because they've obviously taken this information without people's permission with the objective of disadvantaging them, either by tax or other policy matters".
The tracking methods used mirror techniques typically deployed by law enforcement to investigate drug trafficking and organized crime. An O2 spokesman insisted the project was "entirely lawful" and compliant with the Data Protection Act 2018 and UK GDPR. "The fully anonymised and aggregated data used by the Department for Transport showed crowd movement patterns and mode of transportation at no point can individuals be identified, mapped or tracked at any level, and all information shared is compliant with data protection laws", he said. The company added that its staff were unable to identify individual customers.
