Uber fires back at report alleging spying
A high-ranking Uber official on Monday tore into a new report accusing employees of the rideshare company of tracking user data to spy on ex-partners and celebrities.
“It’s absolutely untrue that all (or nearly all) employees have access to customer data, with or without prior approval,” a high-ranking official wrote in an internal email to staff obtained by The Hill.
{mosads}“Much of the information is out of date and doesn’t accurately reflect the state of our practices today,” the email continued.
The Center For Investigative Reporting on Monday published a report citing internal sources that said employees take advantage of user data to track celebrities and acquaintances.
The report claimed that five former Uber security professionals said thousands of employees were able to access user data, even if they lacked the proper credentials to do so.
According former Uber employee Ward Spangenberg, who is cited in the story, many did take advantage of access to user data to do things like stalk ex-partners on the app.
Uber had previously received scrutiny after it came to light that the company’s executives were using a “God View” feature to track customers without their express permission. The company was ordered to pay a $20,000 fine earlier this year.
Uber has denied that “‘all’ or ‘nearly all’ employees have access to customer data, with or without approval” and expressly rejected the claim that employees are only prevented from accessing data by an “honor system,” which the report says is the only barrier between many employees and data.
The email said a select few employees have access to data, adding that even in cases where employees can access user data, they can only access specific portions relevant to their job functions, like fraud prevention or compromised accounts.
“Uber continues to increase our security investments and many of these efforts, like our multi-factor authentication checks and bug bounty program, have been widely reported,” an Uber spokesperson wrote in an email to The Hill.
“We have hundreds of security and privacy experts working around the clock to protect our data. This includes enforcing strict policies and technical controls to limit access to user data to authorized employees solely for purposes of their job responsibilities, and all potential violations are quickly and thoroughly investigated.”
In the staff email, though, the official did note “we haven’t always gotten everything perfect,” and that the ride-hailing app is still trying to improve security to gain consumer trust, without which, it noted, “we have no business.”
Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Log Reg
NOW PLAYING
The Hill Podcasts – Morning Report
