Korean lawmakers press Tesla and BYD over driver data and remote access

Two importers, one committee, the same two questions

South Korean lawmakers put the local heads of Tesla and BYD side by side at a National Assembly audit on October 8, pressing both on driver data and vehicle security. The Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee summoned Tesla Korea chief Seo Yeong-deuk and BYD Korea’s Jo In-cheol as witnesses.

BYD drew the sharpest exchanges over cross-border data. Lawmakers said the company asks buyers to consent to transferring personal information to China and tells those who refuse that the purchase cannot proceed. Jo said only the minimum data is sent, to headquarters in Shenzhen, and that the company will follow Korea’s Personal Information Protection Act.

Representative Eom Tae-young noted that submitted materials put domestic customer data on a Tencent Cloud server in Korea, while the website privacy policy names Alibaba Cloud. Jo called both providers and said storage stays in Korea.

Remote commands and a death the doors trapped

Asked whether the Chinese parent can issue remote commands to Korean vehicles, Jo did not answer directly, saying he understood no such authority exists. Lawmakers also cited China’s National Intelligence Law and Data Security Law, which require firms to assist state intelligence work.

Tesla Korea faced questions on its Full Self-Driving feature and on emergency escape. Hwang Un-ha of the Rebuilding Korea Party raised the October 2024 death of a driver who could not open a Model Y door during a fire in Anseong. Seo said a manual release exists inside the vehicle, and noted Tesla recalled about 2.98 million China-built models over flush door handles.

Seo said roughly 45,000 of about 230,000 Tesla vehicles in Korea carry FSD capability, with no major incidents reported. The two brands held 31.9 per cent and 7.2 per cent of Korea’s imported-car market this year.