Tinkering with Car Software: A New Front in Emissions Standards Enforcement

Digital-rights activists have praised a new federal copyright law that will allow car enthusiasts to tinker with vehicle software without incurring the wrath of carmakers. However, environmental regulators and carmakers warn that the decision will open a new front in the cat-and-mouse game with car lovers who soup up their engines, potentially violating emissions standards. The changes to the law, which are scheduled to take effect next year, are part of a broader exemption to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, a statute that was meant to bring copyright law into the digital era.

Key Takeaways:

• The federal government has approved several new exemptions to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, allowing car enthusiasts to tinker with vehicle software without incurring penalties.
• The exemptions include allowing people to "jailbreak" their mobile phones and reprogram older video games, as well as accessing vehicle software to make repairs or adjust car performance.
• Digital-rights activists have praised the changes, but environmental regulators and carmakers have warned that the decision could lead to more pollution and emissions standards violations.
• Carmakers have used special techniques to detect altered factory-installed software, which could give them a reason to void the warranty.
• The Environmental Protection Agency has identified a significant environmental impact from aftermarket devices that let owners disconnect emissions-control components without activating a warning light.
• The agency has said that modifying engine software to increase power and/or boost fuel economy will often increase emissions.
• Independent researchers might have detected Volkswagen's emissions scandal earlier if they had had access to its software.
• Car owners who alter their vehicles' performance in ways that evade emissions standards can face fines of up to $3,750 for each defeat device and up to $37,500 for each noncompliant vehicle.

Statistics:

• The changes to the copyright law will take effect next year.
• Edge Products, a maker of aftermarket auto components, agreed to pay a $500,000 fine in 2013 for selling devices that let owners of diesel pickup trucks disconnect emissions-control components without activating a warning light.
• The devices were sold under the Edge Racing brand name and resulted in more than 9,000 pickup trucks emitting excess pollution equal to the amount generated by 422 new long-haul trucks operating for 29 years.
• In Volkswagen's case, software could detect when a car was being tested for emissions and activate its pollution controls, then deactivate them when the car was being driven normally.
• The auto industry has argued that the exemption could compromise vehicle safety, given the increasingly complex software systems being used to control cars and alert drivers to hazards.
• Environmental regulators have warned that the majority of modifications to engine software are being performed to increase power and/or boost fuel economy, which will often increase emissions.

Sources:

• BARRY MEIER and JAD MOUAWAD, "New Exemptions to Copyright Law Open Door to Car Tinkering", The New York Times, December 2022
• Environmental Protection Agency, "Letter to the Copyright Office opposing the change", 2022
• Derive Systems of Sanford, Fla., "Reprograms engine computers in ways that it says improve fuel efficiency while reducing emissions", 2022
• Electronic Frontier Foundation, "Petitions seeking changes to parts of the laws that prohibited consumers from unlocking software "access controls" on certain products", 2022
• Edge Products, "Agreed to pay a $500,000 fine in 2013 for selling devices that let owners of diesel pickup trucks disconnect emissions-control components without activating a warning light"