Uber to stop tracking drivers after their trips, gives free insurance in India

Uber attracted a fair bit of criticism when it started tracking the drivers even after their rides ended. Reuters reports that the iPhone app will now be updated to allow tracking only while the app is open.

The change, which restores users’ ability to share location data only while using the app, is expected to be announced on Tuesday and rolled out to iPhone users starting this week. It seems Uber is trying to recover from a series of crises culminating in the ouster of Chief Executive Travis Kalanick and other top executives.

Uber still hasn’t explained why it wanted to track customers after the end of their rides, making only a vague claim that it was to protect customer safety. It has been speculated that it was instead to reduce driver fraud, ensuring that the end of a ride was accurately recorded.

Joe Sullivan, Uber’s chief security officer, told Reuters that it may bring the behavior back at some future point, but on an opt-in basis. Sullivan said Uber made a mistake by asking for more information from users without making clear what value Uber would offer in return. If Uber decides that tracking a rider’s location for five minutes is valuable in the future, it will seek to explain what the value is and allow customers to opt into the setting, he said.

The location-tracking changes will initially only be available to iPhone users, but Uber intends to bring parity to Android devices, Sullivan said. The changes are part of a series of updates expected in the coming year to improve privacy, security and transparency at Uber, Sullivan said.

Uber is also providing free insurance to drivers in India. The insurance will cover for death, disability and hospital stay in the event of accidents. It comes after Uber had cut incentives, but it's still an important gesture.

Uber this week picked Expedia Inc Chief Executive Dara Khosrowshahi to become its new CEO, according to a memo, putting him in charge of turning around the loss-making, scandal-ridden company.