{"id":75,"date":"2020-10-05T13:00:04","date_gmt":"2020-10-05T13:00:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thenextweb.com\/?p=1321578"},"modified":"2020-10-05T13:00:04","modified_gmt":"2020-10-05T13:00:04","slug":"ubers-data-sharing-with-uk-police-worries-driver-unions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/?p=75","title":{"rendered":"Uber\u2019s data sharing with UK police worries driver unions"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This article was originally published by Christopher Carey on <\/span>Cities Today<\/span><\/a>, the leading news platform on urban mobility and innovation, reaching an international audience of city leaders. For the latest updates follow Cities Today on <\/span>Twitter<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>Facebook<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>LinkedIn<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>Instagram<\/span><\/a>, and <\/span>YouTube<\/span><\/a>, or sign up for Cities Today News.<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Uber hands thousands of vital \u2018pieces of intelligence\u2019 to UK authorities each year, complying with over 2,000 requests for data in the capital alone last year.<\/p>\n

The information emerged<\/a> <\/span>at a London court in September as the ride-hailing company fought to regain its license to operate in the city. The final decision was made on 28 September that Uber would be granted its license.<\/p>\n

Concerns have been raised as to the exact nature of the data shared with authorities, and whether this was been leveraged by Uber to support its case for a license.<\/p>\n

James Farrar, General Secretary of the <\/span>App Drivers & Couriers Union,<\/a> which represents thousands of ride-hailing drivers across the UK, said he was \u201cdeeply concerned\u201d about the levels of surveillance and intelligence-gathering on the Uber platform.<\/p>\n

Back in September, Farrar said: \u201cWith Uber\u2019s license hanging by a thread, the rideshare giant is particularly vulnerable to undue pressure from police and regulatory authorities to compromise the personal data protection rights of their drivers, couriers and passengers.\u201d<\/p>\n

The union made specific reference to a letter put before the court that was sent in March on behalf of the <\/span>National Police Chief\u2019s Council<\/a> <\/span>to then Transport for London (TfL) Commissioner Mike Brown, which outlined how Uber helps law enforcement agencies in their ability to tackle drug dealing, human trafficking and child sexual exploitation, and how this ability would be hindered if it lost \u201cdata and support\u201d from the ride-hailer.<\/p>\n

Politicians have also raised concerns, with the UK\u2019s former Brexit Secretary and MP David Davis posting on Twitter<\/a>: \u201cIt is incredibly worrying that Uber has been sharing information with police forces, seemingly without warrants being in place.\u201d<\/p>\n

He went on to say that he plans to table parliamentary questions to the Home Office and freedom of information requests to police forces around the country seeking further information.<\/p>\n

In a statement to <\/span>Cities Today<\/em>, an Uber spokesperson said: \u201cUber takes safeguarding all users and their personal data extremely seriously. Our Law Enforcement Response Team responds to every data request in line with our policies, applicable privacy laws and private hire regulations.\u201d<\/p>\n

Legal battles<\/h2>\n

Uber\u2019s battle to operate in London has a long history. It lost its license in 2017 after TfL raised a number safety concerns, including how the company reports crimes, and obtains medical certificates and performs background checks on its drivers.<\/p>\n

In 2019, it refused to grant Uber a new license, saying that it had continued with a \u201cpattern of failures\u201d over the safety and security of how its platform operates.<\/p>\n

Despite having no official license, the firm has been allowed to carry on as normal while the litigation process continues.<\/p>\n

Last week\u2019s court hearing heard how \u201cmistakes were made\u201d by Uber over a software glitch that allowed more than 14,000 trips to be carried out by drivers who faked their identity on the app, meaning those journeys were uninsured and, in some cases, trips were with unlicensed drivers.<\/p>\n

Gerald Gouriet, a lawyer representing the <\/span>London Taxi Drivers\u2019 Association<\/a> <\/span>told the court that Uber had covered up the issue, a claim refuted by Uber\u2019s legal counsel, who said only 24 drivers exploited the glitch and that the problem was \u201cnot endemic or widespread\u201d and has now been resolved.<\/p>\n

While the court decided Uber could operate in London, the rideshare company faces challenges on other fronts.<\/p>\n

In California, the firm is still <\/span>fighting AB5<\/a>, the legislation brought into effect in January that requires gig-workers to be recognized as employees and paid appropriate benefits.<\/p>\n

Data has also been a sticking point in Uber\u2019s dispute with the Los Angeles Transportation Department over the <\/span>mobility data specification,<\/a> which requires e-scooter operators to provide real-time data to the city.<\/p>\n

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SHIFT is brought to you by Polestar. It\u2019s time to accelerate the shift to sustainable mobility. That is why Polestar combines electric driving with cutting-edge design and thrilling performance. <\/span><\/i>Find out how<\/span><\/a><\/em>.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Published October 5, 2020 \u2014 13:00 UTC <\/p>\n

Source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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