Company spokesman Hideaki Homma said Toyota’s problem with its cloud-based “Connected” service only affected vehicles in Japan.
Connected reminds owners to get maintenance checks, links to entertainment, offers emergency assistance, and can request assistance after a collision or locating a stolen vehicle.
No issues related to the breach have been reported so far.
Although there is no evidence that any information was leaked, copied or misused as a result of the breach, data at risk includes: vehicle identification number, which is separate from the license plate registration, vehicle location, time it was there, and a video taken by the vehicle as “Driving Recorder” in Japan.
This information cannot be used to identify individual owners, according to Toyota Motor Corp., which makes the Prius and luxury Lexus hybrid models.
The vehicles of around 2.15 million people were affected, including those using network services called G-Link, G-Book and Connected.
The Connected service in Japan is operated by a subsidiary.
Until recently, Homma said, no one noticed that outside access to such information should have stopped.
“We are very sorry to have caused such disruption to everyone,” he added.
The problem is a major embarrassment for Japan’s biggest automaker, which has built a reputation for quality and attention to detail.
Automakers around the world are competing to differentiate their model offerings with the latest technology to attract buyers.
Homma said the problem with the system has been resolved, explaining that it is safe to continue driving connected service vehicles as normal and there is no need to bring them in for repair.
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