←back to thread

Tesla said it didn't have key data in a fatal crash, then a hacker found it

(www.washingtonpost.com)
650 points clcaev | 3 comments | 29 Aug 25 11:15 UTC | HN request time: 0s | source
Show context
metaphor ◴[29 Aug 25 12:25 UTC] No.45063162[source]▶
> Immediately after the wreck at 9:14 p.m. on April 25, 2019, the crucial data detailing how it unfolded was automatically uploaded to the company’s servers and stored in a vast central database, according to court documents. Tesla’s headquarters soon sent an automated message back to the car confirming that it had received the collision snapshot.

> Moments later, court records show, the data was just as automatically “unlinked” from the 2019 Tesla Model S at the scene, meaning the local copy was marked for deletion, a standard practice for Teslas in such incidents, according to court testimony.

Wow...just wow.

replies(5): >>45063302 #>>45063632 #>>45063687 #>>45063980 #>>45064115 #
raincole ◴[29 Aug 25 13:09 UTC] No.45063632[source]▶
The 'wow' part is that they deleted data from server. The part you quoted sounds like nothing unusual to me.
replies(1): >>45063732 #
lexicality ◴[29 Aug 25 13:16 UTC] No.45063732[source]▶
You don't think it's unusual that the software is designed to delete crash data from the crashed car?
replies(3): >>45063809 #>>45063911 #>>45064066 #
Thorrez ◴[29 Aug 25 13:33 UTC] No.45063911{3}[source]▶
The question is whether this is code that's special for crashes, or code that runs the exact same way for all data uploads, regardless of whether there's a crash.

You're implying it's special for crashes, but we don't know that.

replies(3): >>45064033 #>>45064087 #>>45064288 #
1. lexicality ◴[29 Aug 25 13:42 UTC] No.45064033{4}[source]▶
The crash system uses this code, therefore they chose to do something that would delete the crash data after a crash.

Saying "hey, the upload_and_delete function is used in loads of places!" doesn't free you of the responsibility that you used that function in the crash handler.

replies(1): >>45064052 #
2. Thorrez ◴[29 Aug 25 13:44 UTC] No.45064052[source]▶
Is this a crash handler, or is it their normal telemetry upload loop?
replies(1): >>45064083 #
3. lexicality ◴[29 Aug 25 13:47 UTC] No.45064083[source]▶
Yes, it's a crash handler that uploads a blackbox "collision snapshot" of the entire car's state leading up to a crash. It's very well documented that Tesla does this, including in the article.