Uber and Lyft’s privacy policies have been center of attention as of late, especially now that their services have grown popular due to cheaper fares. And several U.S. Senate members are taking action.
Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) and Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) sent letters to both ridesharing companies, sharing their concern ontheir policies surrounding privacy and data security.
Earlier this year, Senator Al Franken (D-Minn.) brought up similar issues once it was revealed that Josh Mohrer, Uber executive, traced a reporter’s ride history without her knowing.
There was also an incident where an Uber job applicant was given access to customer records for several hours after leaving the interview.
The letters sent by Nelson and McCaskill referred to these situations as well as a Lyft spokeswoman attaining easy access to all travel logs.
Uber and Lyft were asked to meet with the Commerce Committee to have a briefing on data security and privacy policies.
Lyft told USA Today that they share the same concerns to consumer privacy and that they plan on responding to their letter.
The company also said, “we have continued to upgrade our existing privacy safeguards to enhance user protection.
There have also been incidents, especially with Uber, where drivers were accused of kidnapping and assaulting their riders. The taxi-like service was even halted in India when a driver was accused of rape in Delhi, the capital.
Uber did respond, and sometime next year, they plan on using biometric scans during driver background checks before officially hiring. Their current process to become a driver was described as “lax” in July on ValleyWag.
Both companies have been expanding fast. Uber just announced a new program in New York City called UberPool, allowing riders with similar destinations to share a vehicle – paying less in the end.
With demand increasing, Uber and Lyft’s Privacy Policy will have to change to make riding a lot safer.
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This article was syndicated from Business 2 Community: Senate Members Send Letter Concerning Uber And Lyft’s Privacy Policy
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