Tesla recall vindicates whistleblower Lukasz Krupski
Lukasz Krupski hopes he will be appreciated for the risks he took
Lukasz Krupski, the former Tesla technician who was awarded our 2023 Europe Whistleblowing Prize, was vindicated this week when the company embarked on its biggest recall ever after the US road safety regulator found that its driver assist system known as Autopilot is defective.
Krupski had previously reported serious data protection lapses and provided information that casts doubt on the viability and safety the car’s self-driving technology to the US Securities and Exchange Commission and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
Earlier this year Krupski anonymously leaked 100GB of internal company data to German business paper Handelsblatt, which published a series of explosive revelations, including how Tesla’s customers regularly complained that their cars were liable to break or accelerate suddenly while on Autopilot.
This week the NHTSA released its recall report after a two-year investigation into crashes, some fatal, of cars driven in Autopilot mode. It found that Autopilot’s software doesn’t do enough to prevent misuse and ensure drivers are kept fully attentive and engaged.
Krupski also told The Telegraph this week that he had written to the UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), warning that Tesla staff in Russia and China could access sensitive data about tens of thousands of current and former employees around the world, including their passport numbers, medical details and salaries.
“It could be very useful for Russian or Chinese intelligence,” he said. “Individuals in these countries who have power, they have their own agendas which [do] not necessarily align with the Western world.”
Tesla has not commented on the Krupski’s complaint to the ICO or the NHTSA recall report.
According to the report, Tesla did not concur “with the agency’s analysis” but agreed to a voluntary recall to remedy the defects identified.
The recall affects nearly all Teslas sold in the US since 2012 – a total of over two million vehicles. The NHTSA said it would continue to monitor the software once it was updated.
The Intercept reports that the NHTSA opened over 40 investigations into crashes where it suspected Autopilot was switched on that resulted in 19 fatalities. However, this is a fraction of the number contained in Krupski’s data leaks. The files he supplied to Handelsblatt contained information about over 1 000 crashes, with 2 400 complaints about unexpected acceleration and 1 500 about breaking problems, including 383 cases of unintentional emergency breaking – so-called “phantom stops”.
After the news broke of the Tesla recall, Krupski described it “a step in the right direction” but warned the problem was not confined to US. “The hardware is the same in all the Teslas in the US, China etc,” he told the BBC.
In a previous BBC interview shortly after winning the Blueprint Award, Krupski had warned that the software and hardware wasn’t ready. “It affects all of us because we are essentially experiments in public roads. So even if you don't have a Tesla, your children still walk in the footpath.”
Krupski, who is originally from Poland but worked for Tesla in Norway, has paid a high price for blowing the whistle.
When he reported worker safety concerns to Tesla management, he was harassed, intimidated and eventually fired. Although his external disclosures about data protection lapses and car safety concerns were anonymous, Tesla identified him as the person responsible for the leaks, prompting the company to threaten legal action. Now he is unemployed and has depleted his savings.
Krupski has described becoming a whistleblower as a terrifying experience that took a toll on his health, caused him anxiety and depression, and gave him many sleepless nights. But he told The Telegraph this week that his physical and mental health had improve since he decided to go public.
“Maybe I will end up in prison but maybe I might be rehabilitated as well, and appreciated for the risks I took,” he said.
