Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Mobile
  3. News

Uber’s surveillance feature tracks your location before and after your ride

By

uber rider driver ratings
Image used with permission by copyright holder
According to Uber, the ridehailing company is trying to improve customer experience with its new location feature, but some riders may not appreciate being surveilled. In May Uber announced it would add rider location tracking and now the service can track riders before and after rides, according to Ars Technica.

With the service enabled, Uber will track your location from the time you originally request a ride until five minutes after the ride ends. The company says the information helps drivers find riders without making phone calls. Uber also uses the information to monitor driver service, making sure, for example, riders are picked up and dropped off on the proper side of the street.

Recommended Videos

Uber said in a statement, “We’re always thinking about ways we can improve the rider experience from sharpening our ETA estimates to identifying the best pick up location on any given street. Location is at the heart of the Uber experience, and we’re asking riders to provide us with more information to achieve these goals.”

You have control over whether or not you’ll be surveilled, however. So if you don’t want to be tracked and never allow it, Uber won’t track you. A new popup on the Uber app asks, “Allow ‘Uber’ to access our location even when you are not using the app?” The popup explains that from trip request through five minutes after the app will track the rider’s location, even if the app is in the background. You can click “Allow” or “Don’t Allow” in response to the request.

If you do turn on location access and later change your mind, the popup tells you where to find your phone’s device settings to disable surveillance here. With location services disabled, riders will need to enter pickup addresses manually.

If you’re okay with Uber knowing where you are before and for a few minutes after a ride but are concerned about others accessing that data, an agreement Uber made with New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman may ease your mind. Under that agreement, Uber protects all rider location data with multi-factor authentication and stores it in an encrypted format.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Bruce Brown
Bruce Brown
Contributing Editor
Digital Trends Contributing Editor Bruce Brown is a member of the Smart Homes and Commerce teams. Bruce uses smart devices…
Lyft, Uber to offer discounted rides to the polls on election day
seattle asks facebook google for election data 64338022 vote democracy referendum graphics concept

In a bid to get the vote out on Tuesday, November 3, both Lyft and Uber are offering discounted rides to polling locations on the big day.

For this year’s presidential election, Lyft is offering 50% off one ride up to $10 to any polling location (or drop box) using the code 2020VOTE. But take note -- a Lyft ride from the voting place will be charged at the full rate.

Read more
Uber and Lyft shutdown averted in California after court decision
lyft will shut down operations in california tonight uber shutdown

Uber and Lyft won’t be shutting down their apps in California for now after a judge granted them a temporary reprieve.

The ridesharing companies appealed to extend the stay to a preliminary injunction from last week that requires both companies to classify their contracted drivers as regular employees under state law. The appeal was granted by the court on Thursday, with the judge extending the stay until at least mid-October.

Read more
‘No mask, no ride’: Uber extends face-covering requirement indefinitely
A driver wearing a face mask.

Uber is doubling down on its mask-wearing rule by extending the requirement indefinitely for rides in the U.S. and Canada.

The rule, which came into force in May 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, had been set to stay effective until the end of June. But with infection rates on the rise in numerous states across the U.S., the company now says riders and drivers must wear a face-covering during trips until further notice.

Read more