Government access to personal and sensitive information generated by automated vehicles may create privacy worries that hinder uptake of the new technologies, the National Transport Commission (NTC) has warned.

“We currently have different protections in place in different states and territories, Acting CEO Geoff Allan said in a statement. “We need to have an appropriate framework in place to protect Australians’ privacy.”

An NTC discussion paper looks at privacy risks from cooperative intelligent transport systems (C-ITS) and automated vehicle technology.

Internal vehicle video recording, as well as biometric, biological or health sensors or vehicle communications with other cars and infrastructure could cause issues.

The paper says data-linking, as more information is generated and stored, could allow road and law enforcement agencies to connect individuals with sensitive information.

The paper puts forward several options to address the issue, favouring broad principles on limiting government collection, use and disclosure of information.