We are committed to building new technologies that help make your Uber experience safer, so you can ride and drive with confidence.
If you feel uncomfortable or unsafe during your ride, you can now record the audio of the trip within the app.
You can tap the blue shield to open your Safety Toolkit and access the Record Audio option. The trip will be recorded in the app, and you can choose to share it or not with Uber after the ride has ended.
You can use the feature by:
- Setting up the feature by tapping the shield icon located on the map. (Once it’s set up, the other user will see a notification next to their safety shield on every trip—that audio may be recorded on the trip.)
- To record audio on a trip you can open your safety toolkit and use the start/stop buttons near Record Audio to start or stop recording.
- If you have not set-up the feature, but the other user has, you will be notified of the possibility of the trip being recorded. You are free to cancel the trip if you don’t want to be recorded at no fault.
For everyone’s safety
Riders and drivers can record audio through their app to help encourage safe and comfortable interactions on trips. By giving them this control, Uber empowers its users to monitor and report uncomfortable or unsafe situations.
Designed to protect your privacy
When a rider or driver uses this feature during a ride, the audio recording will be stored and encrypted on the phone for 7 days so that no one—not even the person who initiated the recording—can access it. After that, the audio recording will be deleted. Uber can only access it if the user opens a safety report with Uber and includes this audio file, within 7 days of recording the audio Unless this happens, Uber cannot access any of the content.
Help Uber investigate
We take safety reports seriously. If a user opens a report with an audio file, the Safety team will review it. Uber will take appropriate action in accordance with our policies.
FAQs
General
- Who can use Audio Recording?
Where available, riders and drivers can initiate a recording through the in-app Safety Toolkit using their own smartphone. The other party in the vehicle will not be notified at the time of recording, though notice has been given to all users that this capability is available. Users who have not set up the feature will see a message in their app informing them that audio may be recorded on their trip, if the other user(s) on trip have set up the feature prior to the trip.
Don’t see Audio Recording in your Safety Toolkit? Make sure you have the latest version of the app.
- Why did Uber introduce this feature?
Uber is committed to building technologies that help make your Uber experience safer. The Audio Recording feature is intended to help encourage safe and comfortable interactions while on a trip, determine what happened, and identify the best response in case a safety-related incident takes place.
Privacy
- Can the driver or rider listen to the recording later?
To maintain the privacy of parties in the vehicle, the recorded content is encrypted, and neither riders nor drivers can listen to it.
The recordings are only shared with Uber if submitted by the recording user as part of a ticket via the ‘Help Section’ of the Uber app and only once a trip is completed. The recording will only be decrypted if submitted to Uber.
To learn more about our approach to privacy, please see our Privacy Notice.
- What if I don’t want to be recorded?
You can always cancel the trip if you feel uncomfortable or don’t want to be recorded. Users will see a message in their app informing them that audio may be recorded on their trip when the other user has set up the feature.
We take user privacy very seriously and limit any review of an audio recording to a dedicated Safety team at Uber.
- Does Uber still have access to the recording if I don’t send it?
No. If you don’t submit a safety report with the recording attached, Uber has no access to the recording
- Is it still recording when I’m on a call with someone else?
No. The phone call will take over the microphone, and the recording will automatically stop. You’ll have to start recording again on your own after the call.
- Is Uber listening as the recording is happening?
No, Uber is not listening as the recording is happening. Uber also cannot listen to the recording unless the user includes it with a safety report.
- Will the driver/rider know if I’m recording?
No, other parties in the vehicle will not be notified at the time of recording, but riders will be notified of the possibility of recording when they’re matched with a driver who has set up the recording feature.
- Will Uber provide the recording to anyone else?
In accordance with our law enforcement guidelines and third-party data request policies, and as may be required under applicable laws, Uber may provide the audio recording with governmental, law enforcement and/or juridical bodies if Uber deems it required under applicable law.
- How are the audio files encrypted?
Recordings are encrypted using AES encryption Galois/Counter Mode (GCM) on the consumer’s device. Only Uber has the key to decrypt the file after it has been submitted to our Safety Support team by a user. Importantly, it is the user’s choice when to record audio and when to share it with Uber, provided that they share it within 7 days of recording the audio.
- How long is the recording stored on my device?
The encrypted audio recording will be stored in your device for not more than seven (7) days following which they will be permanently deleted.
Functionality
- How much storage does Audio Recording use?
This will vary based on your mobile phone, but in general 5-7 minutes of recording takes 1 MB of space on your device.
- How much data does it use to share the recording with Uber?
If you do need to submit a safety report with a recording attached, we encourage you to be connected to wifi first. Otherwise, your normal data rates will apply.
- How do I share the recording?
Share at the moment: a pop-up window will appear at the end of the trip, and you can share with Uber on the spot.
Share later: in the app menu, go to your trip history, tap on the trip in question, find the recording in your trip details, and share it with Uber.
Please note: you can only share audio with Uber after a trip ends.
- What will happen after I share the recording with Uber?
A member of Uber’s Safety team will review the report and listen to the contents. Appropriate action will be taken in accordance with our policies and applicable laws.
- I accidentally deleted the recording. Is there any way to recover it?
No, the content is only stored on the device. If you delete it, Uber has no way to recover it.
- When does recording start and stop?
You can start and stop recording at any time through the Safety Toolkit by tapping the blue shield in the app.
- What if I forget to stop the recording?
For riders, recording will automatically stop shortly after the trip ends. For drivers, recording will stop when you go offline.
- [For Drivers only] What happens if I listen to music while recording audio?
If you are using an iPhone and are connected to CarPlay via a USB cable, playing music may interfere with your sound quality. For the best recording experience, consider not playing music while using the feature.
Hajirah Asif
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