Wired provides a detailed look at what’s down the road for drivers in America:

Next month, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is expected to declare that all vehicles must contain an event data recorder, known more commonly as a “black box.” The device, similar to those found in aircraft, records vehicle inputs and, in the event of a crash, provides a snapshot of the final moments before impact.

That snapshot could be viewed by law enforcement, insurance companies and automakers. The device cannot be turned off, and you’ll probably know little more about it than the legal disclosure you’ll find in the owner’s manual.

What is missing from their report is that these black boxes send data over wireless in real-time. It already has been tested in several cities.

The wireless is not just for incident response. Communication through existing vehicle monitoring infrastructure is under review as a means to enable traffic control (e.g. intersection light timings — yellow signals).

Of course a wireless interface to the event recorders on cars around you, and traffic signals, opens up the possibilities of data integrity and confidentiality loss. What are the chances that the system will be designed to be formally correct?