improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page . learn how and when to remove these template messages this article needs to be updated . please update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information . may 2011 this article needs additional citations for verification . please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . unsourced material may be challenged and removed . june 2010 learn how and when to remove this template message learn how and when to remove this template message onstar corporation type subsidiary founded 1996 headquarters detroit michigan usa key people mary chan president parent general motors website onstar.com onstar corporation is a subsidiary of general motors that provides subscription based communications in vehicle security hands free calling turn by turn navigation and remote diagnostics systems throughout the united states canada china mexico europe brazil and argentina . a similar service is known as chevystar in latin american markets except in mexico brazil and argentina . in september 2011 the president of onstar stated that the service had more than six million customers . 1 onstar unit in a 2008 chevrolet impala a new aftermarket interior rear view mirror with a built in onstar module branded as onstar fmv became available to the public on july 24 2011 . it provides some of the features an oem system has such as automatic crash response stolen vehicle tracking turn by turn navigation and roadside assistance . contents 1 overview 2 history 3 china 4 mexico 5 brazil 6 argentina 7 advocacy 8 use as surveillance device 9 advertising campaign 10 hardware 10.1 analog 10.2 digital 10.3 compatibility 11 vulnerability to hacking 12 see also 13 references 14 external links overview edit the onstar service relied on cdma mobile phone voice and data communication primarily via verizon wireless in the united states and bell mobility in canada as well as location information using gps technology . at & t announced the contract to replace verizon in 2013 based on 4g technology from 2014 . drivers and passengers can use its audio interface to contact onstar representatives for emergency services vehicle diagnostics and directions . the onstar service allows users to contact onstar call centers during an emergency . in the event of a collision detected by airbag deployment or other sensors advanced automatic collision notification features can automatically send information about the vehicle s condition and gps location to onstar call centers . onstar has 24 hour emergency call centers in warren michigan ; charlotte north carolina ; and ontario canada and other call centers in makati philippines ; and oshawa ontario . citation needed this advanced automatic collision notification service is designed to assist emergency response efforts . all onstar equipped vehicles have stolen vehicle tracking which can provide the police with the vehicle s exact location speed and direction of movement . starting in the 2009 model year general motors began equipping some new vehicles with stolen vehicle slowdown . this feature allows onstar to remotely slow down the stolen vehicle . the service is also expected to help reduce the risk of property damage serious injuries or fatalities resulting from high speed pursuits of stolen vehicles . customers may opt out of that function . 2 the first successful use of this service occurred in october 2009 when a stolen chevrolet tahoe was recovered and its suspected thief was apprehended . 3 also in 2009 general motors began equipping some new vehicles with remote ignition block allowing onstar to remotely deactivate the ignition so when the stolen vehicle is shut off it can not be restarted . 4 all stolen vehicle assistance services stolen vehicle tracking stolen vehicle slowdown and remote ignition block can be requested by the onstar subscriber but onstar will not activate them until confirming with the police that the vehicle has been reported as stolen . onstar subscribers may be eligible for anti theft and low mileage insurance discounts . since onstar can help with the recovery of a stolen vehicle some insurance companies recognize this and offer a discount . also with certain insurance companies for example gmac insurance and with subscriber permission onstar will send the insurance company the vehicle s odometer reading every month . if the subscriber qualifies as a low mileage driver they may be eligible for an insurance discount . even if the vehicle is onstar equipped no onstar services are available until the system is activated . vehicle owners can choose between three plans 5 protection 19.99 mo which includes advanced automatic collision notification emergency services crisis assist roadside assistance remote access advanced diagnostics and 24 7 access to advisors security 24.99 mo includes all services in the protection plan plus stolen vehicle assistance guidance 34.99 mo includes all services in the security plan plus turn by turn navigation onstar atyourservice and 30 hands free calling minutes history edit onstar was formed in 1996 as a collaboration between gm electronic data systems and hughes electronics corporation . each of the founding companies brought a specific area of expertise to the enterprise gm brought vehicle design and integration and a distribution system of millions of vehicles eds brought much of the systems development and information management and customer service technologies while hughes contributed communications and satellite technology and automotive electronics . in 1996 gm north america operations president rick wagoner officially launched onstar at the chicago auto show . onstar delivered its first product and service to the market in 11 months in the fall of 1996 for model year 1997 cadillac deville cadillac seville and cadillac eldorado models . from 2002 to 2006 onstar service was available on vehicles produced by acura isuzu subaru and volkswagen through a licensing agreement . in april 2006 gm notified approximately 500 000 of their onstar customers who had analog service that their service would be terminated effective december 31 2007 because starting february 18 2008 the federal communications commission fcc would no longer require us cell phone systems to operate in analog mode . customers who purchased a prepaid non refundable non transferable 1 year onstar safe & sound subscription were scheduled to receive an equipment upgrade . if the vehicle is from the 2003 2004 or 2005 model year an adapter costing approximately us 200 includes a one year subscription can be installed at the customer s expense . if it is older it will simply no longer be usable . 6 a law firm in pennsylvania representing some of the affected customers sought to have a class certified for a class action lawsuit for damages claimed in the cancellation of onstar service . 7 on december 19 2011 gm said onstar would join with verizon wireless to offer video chat and streaming content to automobile passengers . 8 since 2014 onstar offers lte wifi service on select gm cars china edit in december 2009 shanghai onstar telematics co. ltd. a joint venture between general motors saic group and sgm shanghai gm began offering its services in china . it is available on select cadillac buick and chevrolet vehicles and china telecom is the wireless network provider throughout china . the service will be available throughout mainland china and will be first launched in mandarin chinese . mexico edit in june 2013 onstar announced its entry to the mexican market . the first vehicles who obtained the system were the 2014 chevrolet cheyenne and the 2014 gmc sierra . currently it is expanding to other vehicles such as the buick regal chevrolet trax cadillac srx chevrolet malibu etc. brazil edit onstar is available in brazil in the chevrolet vehicles chevrolet cobalt chevrolet cruze and chevrolet s 10 . argentina edit onstar started operations in argentina in may 5 2016 with the 2016 chevrolet cruze being the first vehicle to include it . the same vehicle is being assembled in rosario santa fe advocacy edit advocates promote onstar as an essential safety tool . gm commercials have compared it to seatbelts and airbags as the next major technology for safe driving . the benefits they say include its ability to aid police in tracking down stolen vehicles ; contacting emergency medical services in case of an accident should the driver request this or be non responsive ; notifying drivers of potentially dangerous mechanical problems ; emails are sent to owners that give a diagnostics of their vehicle every month if subscribed to ; and unlocking doors for drivers after verifying authorization over the phone should their keys be misplaced or locked inside their car . onstar s basic subscription also includes roadside assistance as well hfc hands free calling which is integrated into the onstar system and operates in the same way as a regular cell phone does except that it is operated through voice recognition . automatic crash response allows emergency advisors to provide emergency medical services ems with additional crash information such as rollover status direction of impact which airbags have deployed front side etc. and the delta v change in velocity force which is a medical measure of the intensity of an impact . all this information allows ems to respond to the crash with appropriate equipment . in september 2011 onstar has changed its terms and conditions to allow sale of vehicle location and speeds to interested third parties including law enforcement agencies which has been criticized in the comp.risks forum . 9 use as surveillance device edit it is theoretically possible for onstar to be remotely activated by malicious third parties or under government order . this would enable third parties to track the location of the car along with the ability to listen to the contents of any conversations carried on by the occupants within the car without their consent . however the fbi has been denied the ability to use this as it disables onstar s safety features as determined by the ninth circuit court of appeals . 10 in its document of privacy practices onstar states that it is not possible for them to listen to or monitor conversations in a car without the knowledge of the occupant . the hardware is designed so that when an advisor calls into a car a light flashes a ring tone is heard and the radio will mute . 11 in 2011 onstar said that it would start retaining all the information collected by the gps and internal system so that it could be sold to third parties possibly insurance companies . 12 although this data is supposed to be anonymized it remains unclear exactly what they mean by this as it is extremely difficult to anonymize gps data . 13 verification needed a few weeks later after outcry from subscribers and privacy advocate groups onstar reversed the decision to continue collecting information from unsubscribed units . advertising campaign edit in 2000 gm produced a series of batman onstar commercials that featured batman using the batmobile and props from the 1989 film using the service to call people access his mail navigate to certain locations and to unlock the batmobile . these were discontinued with radio commercials . gm promoted the service with radio commercials called real calls demonstrating how it would work . it provided the recording of someone interacting with onstar in various scenarios designed to show its utility . the commercials stated that these were recordings of actual instances of customers using the services and gave the date on which they occurred . in september 2010 under then president chris preuss onstar relaunched its brand with a series of commercials with the theme of live on . according to chief marketing officer sam mancuso the campaign was designed to change how people view onstar it s not about waiting for something to happen but something people can use every day . from 2008 onstar has offered santa tracking in all equipped vehicles around the festive period . this has allowed children worldwide