Transparency Report: Government Requests for Data
Overview
Updated November 7, 2019
In this report, Uber is sharing an overview of information that was provided to federal and state regulators and law enforcement agencies in the US and Canada between January and December 2018.
Regulatory reporting requirements
Uber connects riders and drivers in a highly regulated transportation sector. Regulatory agencies like the California Public Utilities Commission oversee offline services like electricity, construction, and taxis in addition to Uber trips. They are empowered by law to require ridesharing companies to report information about their operations. These agencies may request information about trips, trip requests, pickup and dropoff areas, fares, vehicles, and drivers in their jurisdictions for a given time period. There is a risk that information like pickup and dropoff locations may allow government agencies—or anyone else who obtains this information—to identify individual riders by associating it with publicly available records. That is why we’ve specified the total number of drivers and riders whose trip details have been reported below.
In some cases, reporting requirements for online companies may differ from or exceed what regulators demand from offline companies. And in other cases, online companies are requested to produce different types of information—like an electronic trip receipt with a trip route instead of a paper log. Both occur because regulators assume that technology companies maintain and therefore should provide these records.
The tables below show how many riders and drivers were affected by regulatory reporting requirements for our ridesharing business in the US and Canada during the 2018 calendar year.
Regulatory requests
United States
California
Delaware
Florida
Honolulu, HI
Bloomington, IL
Chicago, IL
Kentucky
New Orleans, LA
Maryland
Massachusetts
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Mexico
New York City, NY
Bend, OR
Portland, OR
Redmond, OR
Philadelphia, PA
Rhode Island
Burlington, VT
Kennewick, WA
Seattle, WA
Tacoma, WA
Yakima, WA
Washington, DC
Riders affected
15,589,000
0
0
0
0
5,590,000
0
0
0
0
10
1,000
0
0
9,643,000
0
936,000
<50
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2,294,000
Drivers affected
315,000
50
400
<50
1,000
133,000
19,000
19,000
92,000
179,000
<50
50
75,000
2,000
106,000
<50
19,000
0
500
22,000
50
<50
23,000
14,000
<50
<50
Values reported have been rounded.
Canada
Calgary, AB
Barrie, ON
Brampton, ON
Guelph, ON
Hamilton, ON
London, ON
Mississauga, ON
Niagara, ON
Oakville, ON
Ottawa, ON
Toronto, ON
Vaughan, ON
Waterloo, ON
Quebec
Riders affected
0
0
0
0
47,000
0
1,275,000
0
0
540,000
0
0
0
0
Drivers affected
4,000
1,000
21,000
5,000
4,000
3,000
19,000
2,000
62,000
5,500
75,000
19,000
4,000
11,000
Values reported have been rounded.
Airport reporting requirements
Separate from state and local regulatory agencies, airport authorities have the ability to regulate transportation services within and around airports. In order to operate at airports, ridesharing companies and other similar services are required to enter into agreements created and enforced by each airport authority. These agreements vary by airport and require ridesharing companies to report information such as monthly trip volumes; when vehicles enter and exit the airport area; where vehicles pick up and drop off within the airport area; and/or each vehicle’s registration information, license plate, and driver.
The tables below show the number of riders and drivers affected by airport reporting requirements for our ridesharing business in the US.
Airport requests
United States airports (A-M)
AGS
ALB
ATL
AUS
AVL
BLI
BNA
BOS
BUF
BUR
BWI
CHA
CHS
CLT
COS
CVG
DCA
DFW
DLH
DTW
EUG
FLL
GEG
GSO
HKS
HND
IAD
IAG
JAN
JAX
LAS
LAX
LGB
MCO
MDT
MEM
MIA
MRY
MSP
Riders affected
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Drivers affected
2,000
600
75,000
23,000
1,000
600
13,000
70,000
6,000
69,000
128,000
2,000
5,000
21,000
4,000
11,000
60,000
50,000
400
18,000
100
82,000
2,000
5,000
100
5,000
53,000
1,000
900
11,000
37,000
100,000
54,000
55,000
3,000
7,000
44,000
2,000
17,000
Values reported have been rounded.
United States airports (N-Z)
NLV
OAK
ONT
ORF
PDX
PHX
PIT
PSP
RDU
RNO
ROA
RSW
SAN
SAV
SBP
SEA
SFB
SFO
SJC
SLC
SMF
SMX
SNA
SYR
TPA
TUS
XNA
Riders affected
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Drivers affected
9,000
64,000
30,000
11,000
16,000
37,000
9,000
7,000
17,000
4,000
1,000
9,000
32,000
3,000
1,000
29,000
15,000
91,000
60,000
11,000
16,000
500
57,000
2,000
34,000
5,000
2,000
Values reported have been rounded.
Law enforcement requests
Uber receives requests from law enforcement agencies in both the United States and abroad who seek information about our users relating to criminal law enforcement investigations. We have a legal obligation to respond to valid government requests for user data. Our dedicated team of experts, who are trained to manage these requests, ensures that any disclosure of information is consistent with our internal policies and applicable law. To learn more about our process and requirements for responding to law enforcement requests in the US, see Uber's Guidelines for Law Enforcement Authorities - United States. For the rest of the world, see Uber's Guidelines for Law Enforcement Authorities - Outside the US.
Uber Technologies Inc. offers many products and services, including ridesharing, Uber Eats, JUMP, and Uber for Business. The tables below represent law enforcement data requests for these 4 products and services.
The US statistics below show how many law enforcement requests we received from state and federal authorities, the type of legal process the authorities received, the number of users affected by these requests, and how often we’ve responded with relevant information. The Canada statistics below show how many requests we received through legal or emergency process, the number of users affected by these requests, and how often we’ve responded with relevant information.
Law enforcement requests for user accounts
United States
21,913
% requests where some data was produced¹
72%
Compliance
Fully complied
Partially complied
Withdrawn/no data found
47%
25%
28%
¹Some requests affect more than one user account.
Law enforcement requests from state and federal agencies
United States
State
Federal
Total requests
3,192
633
Requests withdrawn/no data found
910
172
User accounts produced
6,185
10,161
% requests where some data was produced¹
71%
73%
¹Some requests affect more than one user account.
Law enforcement requests by process
United States
Subpoena
Emergency
Search warrant
Court order
Total requests
2,106
972
629
118
User accounts requested
17,126
1,702
2,667
418
% requests where some data was produced²
73%
61%
84%
66%
¹As of this reporting period, Uber has not received a national security request.
²Some requests affect more than one user account.
Law enforcement requests by process
Canada
Legal process
Emergency
Total requests
63
98
User accounts requested
456
137
% requests where some data was produced¹
90%
62%
¹Some requests affect more than one user account.
FAQ
Ridesharing companies have long been required to provide regulators with information about our business operations, but few provide public transparency about these requirements. By publishing this report, we hope to give consumers more visibility into how their data is shared between companies and government agencies and enable them to consider the type and scope of data that regulators have access to. Uber’s transparency report was the first of its kind to address ridesharing services and gives an overview of what we provide to government agencies in the US and Canada.
Currently, this report covers data we are compelled to share with regulators, airports, and law enforcement agencies for different parts of our business in the US and Canada. This report is not an exhaustive overview; for example, it does not cover the location data that local jurisdictions compel us to share about trips taken with our bikes and scooters. However, we’re committed to expanding the report in the future to cover our growing set of transportation options and adequately reflect the ever-growing and complex reporting requirements we’re subject to as a regulated global business.
When regulatory agencies ask for more information than is necessary to fulfill their obligations—or information that is commercially or personally sensitive—we seek to narrow our response. This may involve negotiations with the regulatory agency, and in some cases it has required defending ourselves in legal proceedings before the agency or in court.
Not always. But we do ask for this information to ensure that data requests are limited to legitimate regulatory purposes.
We have attempted to limit agencies from disclosing commercially or personally sensitive information. But agencies may disregard our requests and complaints, collecting and exposing far more data than necessary to fulfill their obligations. For instance, this data can be exposed when regulatory agencies receive Freedom of Information requests and respond by producing data we shared with them. In addition, agencies occasionally inadvertently disclose confidential information in their possession.
Only in some cases. Taxis are not always bound by the same agencies or regulations as other regulated transportation companies. Depending on the location, the authorities and rules that apply to each type of company may vary.
State and local regulators have very different objectives from airport authorities. State and local regulators, like public utility commissions, are responsible for ensuring that regulated transportation companies operate in accordance with the applicable regulations, including those governing safety. Airport authorities often defer to state and/or local regulations but may require additional data requirements that allow them to track and count the number of vehicles on their property.
Ridesharing companies must agree to airport rules as part of the permitting process. Each airport authority independently determines what information is required to report to them.
Yes, some ask to have information broken out by product type or the regulatory framework each vehicle is operating under.
Yes. The information airports request and receive from taxis, limousines, and livery providers is generally consistent with what is disclosed in this report.
Airport authorities don’t tell us what they do with the information we provide.
During a criminal investigation, law enforcement agencies may ask us for information about user(s) that’s relevant to the investigation. Our dedicated team of experts, who are trained to manage these requests, work to ensure that any information we disclose is consistent with our policies and applicable law.
Uber is committed to protecting the privacy and security of our users’ data. With limited exceptions like emergencies, we require a valid and sufficient legal process from official government agencies before we disclose any information about our users. When we receive a request from law enforcement, we review it to ensure that it satisfies legal requirements and narrowly tailor it to a legitimate law enforcement need; we object to overly broad, vague, or unreasonable requests.
To learn more about our process and requirements for responding to law enforcement requests in the US, see Uber's Guidelines for Law Enforcement Authorities - United States. For the rest of the world, see Uber's Guidelines for Law Enforcement Authorities - Outside the US.
We have not received any requests issued under the provisions of national security statutes.