# Uber doesn't just stalk passengers



## iumichael (Sep 3, 2014)

On my way home from work tonight, I got the creepiest phone call I've received in a long time. 

Uber started offering weekday guarantees for my city this week. Terms are average at least 1 trip per hour, 80% acceptance rate, all rides must originate in my city, etc. I logged on, got a ping, did the trip, went back online afterwards, didn't get anymore pings so I headed to my house with the app on. I live on the edge of the city, but with the same city's mailing address. 

My phone rings about 1 mile from my house. It's an ops manager for our market, telling me that to participate in the guarantee I needed to be in town and not "just sitting at my house". He said for the past 3 days he had been watching me be online from my house, and that wouldn't count for the guarantee. I told him I hadn't just been sitting at my house, that I had just completed a trip actually. He said he didn't have my trip data in front of him, but he just wanted to let me know that guarantee wouldn't apply to me since I wasn't near downtown. 

I've met the terms of the guarantee. I've averaged closer to 2 trips per hour instead of the minimum 1. I've not declined a single trip. I have a 4.88 rating. He was so condescending and unwilling to hear my side of the story. This company just made news about stalking reporters, so drivers are obviously fair game, too!


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## chi1cabby (May 28, 2014)

Wow!
That's all I can say!


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## Rockwall (Oct 10, 2014)

Big brother Uber is watching


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## iumichael (Sep 3, 2014)

chi1cabby said:


> Wow!
> That's all I can say!


I'm freaked out lol This takes the cake of my Uber career so far. I don't need to Uber, I did it because it's kind of fun and makes me a little extra money. This was not a fun phone call, though, especially in light of the news the company has already made this week. Do they not learn from their mistakes?


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## chi1cabby (May 28, 2014)

It's a new Business Model.
Things like ethics, fair play, decency don't apply!


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## Tommy Tours (Sep 19, 2014)

That'sweird that they could do that, but not fix a single driver problem for 3 plus days now


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## Rockwall (Oct 10, 2014)

iumichael said:


> I'm freaked out lol This takes the cake of my Uber career so far. I don't need to Uber, I did it because it's kind of fun and makes me a little extra money. This was not a fun phone call, though, especially in light of the news the company has already made this week. Do they not learn from their mistakes?


This seems like creepy micro management, and beats Uber claim of us being independent contractors.
Next time, they will pop up in your phone saying : enough posting in uber people Michael, get back to the assembly line


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## Ehmtbescrewingus (Oct 16, 2014)

iumichael said:


> On my way home from work tonight, I got the creepiest phone call I've received in a long time.
> 
> Uber started offering weekday guarantees for my city this week. Terms are average at least 1 trip per hour, 80% acceptance rate, all rides must originate in my city, etc. I logged on, got a ping, did the trip, went back online afterwards, didn't get anymore pings so I headed to my house with the app on. I live on the edge of the city, but with the same city's mailing address.
> 
> ...


You should have charged him for the call! The nerve of these people.


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## iumichael (Sep 3, 2014)

Rockwall said:


> This seems like creepy micro management, and beats Uber claim of us being independent contractors.
> Next time, they will pop up in your phone saying : enough posting in uber people Michael, get back to the assembly line


Before I posted this here, I realized there is a distinct possibility they will read this and I will soon be deactivated. I don't mind at this point.


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## Worcester Sauce (Aug 20, 2014)

iumichael said:


> On my way home from work tonight, I got the creepiest phone call I've received in a long time.
> 
> Uber started offering weekday guarantees for my city this week. Terms are average at least 1 trip per hour, 80% acceptance rate, all rides must originate in my city, etc. I logged on, got a ping, did the trip, went back online afterwards, didn't get anymore pings so I headed to my house with the app on. I live on the edge of the city, but with the same city's mailing address.
> 
> ...


I can't find the words. What balls on the ops manager. You must have been enraged when you received that call. What does it matter where you "sit" while waiting for a ping (as long as you are within the specified geographic boundaries in order to be eligible for the guarantees)? So quintessentially "UBER"....condescending and "big brother" cyber-type tactics. Typically there is a map of the geographic area included with the Uber email that outlines the eligibility rules.
I printed a copy of the map when I had to fight for my guarantee payments (I was glad that I did). Keep us posted on how this goes for you. If you do not get paid, I will forward to you the emails that I sent, which eventually got me paid. Good luck.....


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## LookyLou (Apr 28, 2014)

"GOD Mode"


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## Chicago-uber (Jun 18, 2014)

I'm shocked that uber has phones


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## LookyLou (Apr 28, 2014)

Chicago-uber said:


> I'm shocked that uber has phones


I think they got one installed yesterday.


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## DC_Uber_Lyft_Driver (Sep 2, 2014)

If this is true, it's COMPLETELY UNACCEPTABLE.


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## UL Driver SF (Aug 29, 2014)

Watching you online from your house......

What exactly does that mean? On the app? Through the net? Phone camera?????????


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## iumichael (Sep 3, 2014)

Worcester Sauce said:


> I can't find the words. What balls on the ops manager. You must have been enraged when you received that call. What does it matter where you "sit" while waiting for a ping (as long as you are within the specified geographic boundaries in order to be eligible for the guarantees)? So quintessentially "UBER"....condescending and "big brother" cyber-type tactics. Typically there is a map of the geographic area included with the Uber email that outlines the eligibility rules.
> I printed a copy of the map when I had to fight for my guarantee payments (I was glad that I did). Keep us posted on how this goes for you. If you do not get paid, I will forward to you the emails that I sent, which eventually got me paid. Good luck.....


Oh I was enraged, along with a few other choice words. I don't rely on Uber for anything. I have a decent full time occupation in IT. These children definitely have balls (I've met the guy who called in person before, he's fresh out of grad school and is maybe 25-26). I don't need that extra $100/week I've been averaging to let them push me around like this.

Our city doesn't have UberBlack or UberSUV available in the passenger app. If you place the pin at my house, the passenger app doesn't show UberBlack or UberSUV. If you move the pin a couple of miles farther out, UberBlack and UberSUV are available again. That's why I assumed my house was within the boundaries. That, plus my mailing address at home is the same city. There was no map in the guarantee email, just the following rules:

*RULES:*

Must have acceptance rate of over 80%
All trips must originate in ------------
Must average a minimum of 1 trip per hour completed within a single guaranteed hours range to qualify for that guaranteed hourly rate
MUST opt in by clicking the button below
I'm baffled at how I can meet the terms and rules they set, and get a ball-busting phone call from some Uber creep watching me for the past 3 days. Given Uber's scumbag reputation, this shouldn't surprise me... but until it happened to me personally I just didn't understand what a bunch of pricks these guys are.


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## iumichael (Sep 3, 2014)

UL Driver SF said:


> Watching you online from your house......
> 
> What exactly does that mean? On the app? Through the net? Phone camera?????????


On the app. I guess they saw my car out on the fringe of the city, and turned on god mode to see who the naughty guy was going home between trips when it was slow.


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## iumichael (Sep 3, 2014)

DC_Uber_Lyft_Driver said:


> If this is true, it's COMPLETELY UNACCEPTABLE.


I promise you, I have no agenda and did not lie about anything in my original post. Look back to September in my posting history. You'll probably see posts from me about how excited I was to get started with Uber. Honeymoon is over. These people are creepy bastards.


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## Woober (Oct 12, 2014)

LookyLou nailed it. "God Mode". I always wonder if they are doling out pings based on their own criteria rather than closest car?


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## chi1cabby (May 28, 2014)

Chicago-uber said:


> I'm shocked that uber has phones


Google voice numbers.


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## Greg (Sep 30, 2014)

I glad I quit ! Uber act like slave owner, do not work for them! , go fishing instead!


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## getemtheresafely (Jul 1, 2014)

iumichael said:


> He said he didn't have my trip data in front of him, but he just wanted to let me know that guarantee wouldn't apply to me since I wasn't near downtown.


I am convinced this call was just their "justification" for you NOT to receive the guarantee.......


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## NicknTulsa (Jul 16, 2014)

I don't understand why you guys are upset. Of course they watch... it's a high tech business. They need to know where the cars are and if they can meet demand. I don't think a call is justified, but he probably thought he was helping. 

I wish they'd call me and tell me to go home because there is no chance of getting a ping with all the drivers out.


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## duggles (Aug 25, 2014)

Wow. I would call a press individual and let them know, ask if they think that qualifies you as an independent contractor?


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## iumichael (Sep 3, 2014)

NicknTulsa said:


> I don't understand why you guys are upset. Of course they watch... it's a high tech business. They need to know where the cars are and if they can meet demand. I don't think a call is justified, but he probably thought he was helping.
> 
> I wish they'd call me and tell me to go home because there is no chance of getting a ping with all the drivers out.


Nick, I'm upset because I was online and available in the city where the guarantee was offered. I have exceeded the number of rides per hour required in the guarantee rules. There wasn't a map stating the guarantee only applied to a certain part of the city. If I had to be downtown to earn the guarantee, they should have stated that in their email with the other terms. I'm also upset that the creep said "He had been watching me sit at home for 3 days" because that is not true. If I had, I wouldn't have been able to do the required # of rides to meet the minimum.

Also, if this is against the rules, how about positioning yourself away from other cars to avoid pings? Can we do that, as long as we are within 1 mile of downtown? 5 miles? Or just whatever Uber feels like that day? The whole experience just felt surreal and creepy. Like "oh we just realized our rules left some loopholes open that we don't like, so let's fix it by calling up this driver and changing the rules." We are independent contractors, not employees. They give up the right to tell us when and where to work for the benefit of not paying employer social security and worker's comp insurance for us. This phone call today definitely did not put the "independent" feeling into this contractor


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## Worcester Sauce (Aug 20, 2014)

iumichael said:


> Oh I was enraged, along with a few other choice words. I don't rely on Uber for anything. I have a decent full time occupation in IT. These children definitely have balls (I've met the guy who called in person before, he's fresh out of grad school and is maybe 25-26). I don't need that extra $100/week I've been averaging to let them push me around like this.
> 
> Our city doesn't have UberBlack or UberSUV available in the passenger app. If you place the pin at my house, the passenger app doesn't show UberBlack or UberSUV. If you move the pin a couple of miles farther out, UberBlack and UberSUV are available again. That's why I assumed my house was within the boundaries. That, plus my mailing address at home is the same city. There was no map in the guarantee email, just the following rules:
> 
> ...


Typically the hardest hurdle is getting that 1 trip per hour qualifier. Also, usually one must achieve an 80% acceptance rate. But I notice that your acceptance rate must be OVER 80%. That may not sound like a big deal, but on a slow night, 4 rides out of 5 pings is exactly 80% (not enough to qualify based upon the language used in the rules that were set forth).

But to the point at hand.....geographical area of eligibility. "All trips must originate in----------". In my case the area(----------) was highlighted in blue and I was able to "left click" over it and a new window would open up with an actual map which clearly defined the geographical boundaries. I take it that was not the case for you.

The striking thing for me when reading about your phone call from the Uber ops Manager (and the sneaky way that the rules are worded) is the sense that this guy is actually "rooting" for his drivers to FAIL in achieving the incentive guarantees.
Piss-ant, Uber-boy tool (not you....the ops mgr ****tard)


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## iumichael (Sep 3, 2014)

Worcester Sauce said:


> Typically the hardest hurdle is getting that 1 trip per hour qualifier. Also, usually one must achieve an 80% acceptance rate. But I notice that your acceptance rate must be OVER 80%. That may not sound like a big deal, but on a slow night, 4 rides out of 5 pings is exactly 80% (not enough to qualify based upon the language used in the rules that were set forth).
> 
> But to the point at hand.....geographical area of eligibility. "All trips must originate in----------". In my case the area(----------) was highlighted in blue and I was able to "left click" over it and a new window would open up with an actual map which clearly defined the geographical boundaries. I take it that was not the case for you.


I haven't declined or passed up a single trip so acceptance rate should be fine. I know to rate a customer and go back online right away so as to not miss any ghost pings (or did they finally fix that issue in the app?).

I just checked the guarantee email again. No map, and no html links to a map in it.


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## UL Driver SF (Aug 29, 2014)

I went back and looked at the wording of the guarantee you posted. It looks strange.


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## Worcester Sauce (Aug 20, 2014)

iumichael said:


> I haven't declined or passed up a single trip so acceptance rate should be fine. I know to rate a customer and go back online right away so as to not miss any ghost pings (or did they finally fix that issue in the app?).
> 
> I just checked the guarantee email again. No map, and no html links to a map in it.


It sounds as if you have met all the eligibility hurdles. Unfortunately, you may have to fight to get paid and you may have to circumvent that local ****** bag ops manager to do it. I have a few email addresses that were effective for me and will help you to bypass the front line CSRs. Let me know if you need them (and the content that I sent).
PS....sometimes there is a normal one week lag in processing the incentives.


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## iumichael (Sep 3, 2014)

UL Driver SF said:


> I went back and looked at the wording of the guarantee you posted. It looks strange.


It's the first week they've offered a guarantee during the week like this. Maybe they didn't put much thought into the language. Here's the full text if you're curious:


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## Worcester Sauce (Aug 20, 2014)

iumichael said:


> It's the first week they've offered a guarantee during the week like this. Maybe they didn't put much thought into the language. Here's the full text if you're curious:


....me again. I just read the full text. I assume that the "area" where trips must originate is articulated as "the name of your town".
(aka within the city limits). After reading the full text (and despite that ****ed up phone call), my sense is that you will ultimately get paid.


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## Guest (Nov 21, 2014)

I don't think this qualifies as "legitimate business purposes" for using God mode..this just comes off as creepy. I wish Uber would actually be transparent with riders and drivers about what qualifies for God mode usage.


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## iumichael (Sep 3, 2014)

Yeah, all it said there was "All trips must originate in Ubertown" where Ubertown is the name of my city. No links or anything from the city name to a map. That's all it said about the area for the guarantee.


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## iumichael (Sep 3, 2014)

CabbieGuy93 said:


> I don't think this qualifies as legitimate business purposes for using God mode..this just comes off as creepy. I wish Uber would actually be transparent with riders and drivers about what qualifies for God mode usage.


That really sums up the majority of my creeped out feeling in all of this. If they wanted to know how many cars were available and where, no problem. But to single me out of the pack, look up my name and contact information, then call like that... freaking weirdos.

The more I have time to digest this, the more I think they got in over their heads with this guarantee. I have a friend who also drives here. He was out of town the night the guarantee email came out. He tried to opt in the next day, they had already taken down the opt in form for this guarantee, less than 24 hours after they offered it. Every night this week, I've seen 10 cars available in the passenger app (it's a small city of about 80,000). I am averaging about $8-$10 per hour in fares, for which they guaranteed $20 per hour.

I think they are losing their collective butts on this guarantee, and are looking for ways to cut their losses. I must have looked like an easy target since I was a few miles away from downtown. I think this just irks me even more when I think about their motives behind the phone call. It wasn't a suggestion, or helpful advice. It was "you can't participate in the guarantee if you just sit at your house." I tried to explain I had met the requirements, he cut me off and said it didn't matter. Uggh, I'm not giving up on this without a fight.


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## UL Driver SF (Aug 29, 2014)

iumichael said:


> It's the first week they've offered a guarantee during the week like this. Maybe they didn't put much thought into the language. Here's the full text if you're curious:


Yea....the ones they send me in SF usually start out.....must be online in SF for the designated hours. If it is a certain section of a city it mentions that.

Yup...yours seems poorly written.

As for being at home I would ask him to point out where you are violating any rule by doing that.


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## scrurbscrud (Sep 11, 2014)

iumichael said:


> I think they are losing their collective butts on this guarantee, and are looking for ways to cut their losses.


Of course that's the case! The local manager is probably on the hook for the performance budget. The notion that 1 $4 gross fare per hour is sufficient is only a sufficient way to go broke and somebody will hang i.e. the local guy in charge.

I'd rather they deployed drivers to busy areas. I'll run my ass of for $. That's why I do ride share. Sure as hell ain't interested in sitting at home or even worse, sitting in my ride waiting for nothing.

That being said, without prior guidance on the guarantee, that's just poor biz method from their end.


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## Troy Riggins (Sep 30, 2014)

If I didn't sit and wait for pings at my house the entire west side of the Des Moines area would have a hard time getting drivers (in fact a lot of riders tell me they rarely see cars available). They all go downtown. Usually I'm the only car in my ping area.


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## DriversOfTheWorldUnite (Nov 11, 2014)

duggles said:


> Wow. I would call a press individual and let them know, ask if they think that qualifies you as an independent contractor?


I thought the same thing. Everyone needs to save & disperse evidence that even hints at an employer/employee relationship, because enough of it is out there.


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## newsboy559 (Oct 14, 2014)

iumichael said:


> Nick, I'm upset because I was online and available in the city where the guarantee was offered. I have exceeded the number of rides per hour required in the guarantee rules. There wasn't a map stating the guarantee only applied to a certain part of the city. If I had to be downtown to earn the guarantee, they should have stated that in their email with the other terms. I'm also upset that the creep said "He had been watching me sit at home for 3 days" because that is not true. If I had, I wouldn't have been able to do the required # of rides to meet the minimum.
> 
> Also, if this is against the rules, how about positioning yourself away from other cars to avoid pings? Can we do that, as long as we are within 1 mile of downtown? 5 miles? Or just whatever Uber feels like that day? The whole experience just felt surreal and creepy. Like "oh we just realized our rules left some loopholes open that we don't like, so let's fix it by calling up this driver and changing the rules." We are independent contractors, not employees. They give up the right to tell us when and where to work for the benefit of not paying employer social security and worker's comp insurance for us. This phone call today definitely did not put the "independent" feeling into this contractor


Nice response. I believe the national media should be alerted to this.


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## newsboy559 (Oct 14, 2014)

iumichael said:


> It's the first week they've offered a guarantee during the week like this. Maybe they didn't put much thought into the language. Here's the full text if you're curious:


If demand is increasing so much, then why do they need to offer wage guarantees? It seems drivers would be making plenty of money if demand was truly good.

This whole guarantee thing just makes me mad, anyway. Why do they waste all this money on these guarantees when they could be spending it on marketing campaigns targeting new riders? In my city, demand during daytime hours during the week is almost non-existent, even in our downtown. I went three hours without a ping one day last week. It's such a waste.


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## KeJorn (Oct 3, 2014)

I know that most Uber guarantees require that you operate within certain boundaries (usually around the city they need drivers in).
Uber used to provide a map along with each guarantee stating where those boundaries were.
Haven't seen them lately.

While I agree the fact he stated you were _"sitting in your house"_ is totally f'd up and creepy as hell, they do appear to use geo-fencing to track whether you are operating within the area they designate for guarantees, which is based off your GPS location.
Since your address would be listed with your profile, that CSR clearly did the math (and stalking).

One of my riders relayed a story to me where he waited over 20 minutes for an Uber driver (he was further from the city and it listed her around 10 min away).
When he looked at the app, he noticed she had not budged at all. He looked up the location on Google maps and it was a house.
He called her to find out if she was on her way, she said yes and finally arrived about 10 min later with wet hair and looking like she just got out of the shower and dressed.
Needless to say he was not happy, since he needed to get to the airport ASAP.
So perhaps complaints like that has resulted in Uber 'stalking us'.

Don't forget, they want the microphone on your iPhone turned on too. What does that tell you?


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## DriversOfTheWorldUnite (Nov 11, 2014)

KeJorn said:


> One of my riders relayed a story to me where he waited over 20 minutes for an Uber driver (he was further from the city and it listed her around 10 min away).
> When he looked at the app, he noticed she had not budged at all. He looked up the location on Google maps and it was a house.
> He called her to find out if she was on her way, she said yes and finally arrived about 10 min later with wet hair and looking like she just got out of the shower and dressed.
> Needless to say he was not happy, since he needed to get to the airport ASAP.
> So perhaps complaints like that has resulted in Uber 'stalking us'.


Well boo hoo. That's what you get when you use independent contractors.


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## FLrocket (Oct 17, 2014)

iumichael said:


> Oh I was enraged, along with a few other choice words. I don't rely on Uber for anything. I have a decent full time occupation in IT. These children definitely have balls (I've met the guy who called in person before, he's fresh out of grad school and is maybe 25-26). I don't need that extra $100/week I've been averaging to let them push me around like this.
> 
> Our city doesn't have UberBlack or UberSUV available in the passenger app. If you place the pin at my house, the passenger app doesn't show UberBlack or UberSUV. If you move the pin a couple of miles farther out, UberBlack and UberSUV are available again. That's why I assumed my house was within the boundaries. That, plus my mailing address at home is the same city. There was no map in the guarantee email, just the following rules:
> 
> ...


You should get in touch with some of the national reporters, such as Ellen Huet or Sarah Lacy in regards to this story. I'm sure it would be of interest to them.


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## iumichael (Sep 3, 2014)

KeJorn said:


> I know that most Uber guarantees require that you operate within certain boundaries (usually around the city they need drivers in).
> Uber used to provide a map along with each guarantee stating where those boundaries were.
> Haven't seen them lately.
> 
> ...


Just to clarify. I wasn't online from home in my pajamas. Here's a breakdown of my guarantee hours worked this week:

Tuesday 4-6pm - I logged in from downtown at 4pm. I managed to get 2 or 3 rides. The guarantee period ended at 6pm, so at 5:30pm without a ping for awhile I drove towards my house on the edge of town. I arrived home at 5:45pm and left the app logged in until 6:00pm. 
Tuesday 8-10pm - I logged in as I was leaving home at 8pm. I stopped for gas and got into the downtown area around 8:15pm. I did a couple of rides between 8:15pm and 9:15pm, it was slow after that so I stayed logged in and drove home. Got home around 9:30pm, stayed logged in until 10pm.
Wednesday 5-6pm - Logged in as I left work, did 1 ride around 5:15pm, finished it and went back online around 5:30pm and headed towards the house with the app on. I got home around 5:45pm and stayed logged in until 6pm.
Wednesday 8-10pm - Logged in at 8pm, went into town had my first ping by 8:15pm. Stayed pretty busy that night. Had 5 fares and stayed out working until 10pm when that guarantee period ended.
Thursday - 5-6pm - Logged in as I left work, did 1 ride around 5:15pm, went back online by 5:25pm and didn't get any pings after waiting in town for a bit. Headed to the house around 5:35pm, then got the creeper's phone call around 5:45pm.

I started and ended some of the shifts I worked from home. If the 15 minutes or so at the beginning or end of each shift don't count towards the guarantee, so be it - I'm fine with that. What he was telling me however, was that I didn't qualify at all for the guarantee because I had spent some time at my house.

It would be nice if they had told us about the boundaries for the guarantee in advance. It would be nicer still if they would pay me for the hours that I qualified for, even if they don't count the time I was at my house (they could verify some of this by looking at my trip history). Nothing in the guarantee rules stated "logging in from outside the guarantee area will void your entire guarantee this week." And yes, it would be nice if I hadn't gotten the "I've been watching you sit at home for 3 days now" phone call. That remark was condescending, not true, creepy, and really shitty of him.


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## Lidman (Nov 13, 2014)

perhaps some of the uber staff are undercover cia operatives


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## Roogy (Nov 4, 2014)

Uber may be a new arm of the NSA?


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## Roogy (Nov 4, 2014)

My first weekend I stopped entertaining the idea of even trying to get in on their guarantees, after getting pings on Halloween night from 20 minutes away. Realized I was being set up to fail either the 2 trips per hour requirement or the 90% acceptance requirement.


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## UL Driver SF (Aug 29, 2014)

I'd still re check all the requirements they sent you. I'd then ask them to show you where you violated any of those and how many times. What if your home was in the middle of the designated area? Can't go there to use the bathroom? Eat lunch? Plot to take over the world? I'd also go into the drivers center in your area if you have one.


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## newsboy559 (Oct 14, 2014)

iumichael said:


> Just to clarify. I wasn't online from home in my pajamas. Here's a breakdown of my guarantee hours worked this week:
> 
> Tuesday 4-6pm - I logged in from downtown at 4pm. I managed to get 2 or 3 rides. The guarantee period ended at 6pm, so at 5:30pm without a ping for awhile I drove towards my house on the edge of town. I arrived home at 5:45pm and left the app logged in until 6:00pm.
> Tuesday 8-10pm - I logged in as I was leaving home at 8pm. I stopped for gas and got into the downtown area around 8:15pm. I did a couple of rides between 8:15pm and 9:15pm, it was slow after that so I stayed logged in and drove home. Got home around 9:30pm, stayed logged in until 10pm.
> ...


I think your work history demonstrated here is typical of many of us who just do this in our extra time. there's absolutely nothing wrong with it and you should be paid the guarantee.


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## KrisThuy (Aug 6, 2014)

nxt thing you know

@ "walmart's restroom"

..ring ring......

you: hello???? whos this??

uber: wtf why are u taking so long??? its surging right now!!! get back out there and driveee slave!!


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## unter ling (Sep 29, 2014)

newsboy559 said:


> If demand is increasing so much, then why do they need to offer wage guarantees? It seems drivers would be making plenty of money if demand was truly good.
> 
> This whole guarantee thing just makes me mad, anyway. Why do they waste all this money on these guarantees when they could be spending it on marketing campaigns targeting new riders? In my city, demand during daytime hours during the week is almost non-existent, even in our downtown. I went three hours without a ping one day last week. It's such a waste.


Sometimes they use the guarantee to get a car presence out on the road, its nice for users to open the app and see a lot of cars. And what users see is a lot of available cars, they dont think oh look at al, the cars it must be quiet.

When iwas on uber black join and support they were paying $33 an hour and an extra $10 per ride. In one 8 hour shift i did one ride @ $20. Did i care, shit no, I got $284 that night and when a user turned on their app the saw cars.


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## Jay2dresq (Oct 1, 2014)

I just wish they would not constantly text me "its cold today", "Its raining today". I'm an adult.  I am capable of looking up a weather report and looking out my window myself. If I'm available to drive, I'll go online. If not, I'm offline. Don't pester me.


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## Tx rides (Sep 15, 2014)

LookyLou said:


> "GOD Mode"


As in "***DAMN!!!" I keep saying "now I've heard it all", but every day, I stand corrected


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## Tx rides (Sep 15, 2014)

iumichael said:


> Oh I was enraged, along with a few other choice words. I don't rely on Uber for anything. I have a decent full time occupation in IT. These children definitely have balls (I've met the guy who called in person before, he's fresh out of grad school and is maybe 25-26). I don't need that extra $100/week I've been averaging to let them push me around like this.
> 
> Our city doesn't have UberBlack or UberSUV available in the passenger app. If you place the pin at my house, the passenger app doesn't show UberBlack or UberSUV. If you move the pin a couple of miles farther out, UberBlack and UberSUV are available again. That's why I assumed my house was within the boundaries. That, plus my mailing address at home is the same city. There was no map in the guarantee email, just the following rules:
> 
> ...


@DjTim now this is what I'm talking about with the independent contractor versus employee line crossing


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## DjTim (Oct 18, 2014)

Tx rides said:


> @DjTim now this is what I'm talking about with the independent contractor versus employee line crossing


You are correct in that context. My question back - is this just a single individual manager from Uber or is this a company policy followed in each city.

That employee's manager should be contacted and rectify this. I've never personally had a call like this from Uber. Now the question becomes, has other drivers had this call and is this happening in other markets.


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## Tx rides (Sep 15, 2014)

DjTim said:


> You are correct in that context. My question back - is this just a single individual manager from Uber or is this a company policy followed in each city.
> 
> That employee's manager should be contacted and rectify this. I've never personally had a call like this from Uber. Now the question becomes, has other drivers had this call and is this happening in other markets.


The fact that employees have the ability to track drivers is amply damning.


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## drivernotfound (Nov 5, 2014)

UL Driver SF said:


> Watching you online from your house......
> 
> What exactly does that mean? On the app? Through the net? Phone camera?????????


A new text: We've been listening in from your phone's microphone. Please stop fapping it and go online with Uber!


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## drivernotfound (Nov 5, 2014)

KrisThuy said:


> nxt thing you know
> 
> @ "walmart's restroom"
> 
> ...


Ring ring ring. "You're taking longer than _usual_. Leave walmart now, uberslave!"


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## DjTim (Oct 18, 2014)

Tx rides said:


> The fact that employees have the ability to track drivers is amply damning.


You would be surprised. The last company I was with - we could track any smartphone (all 5200 of them) anywhere. We could log text message, we could really do anything. It's called "MDM" or Mobile Device Management.

The thing is, you need to trust employees, and that they won't go and do anything "wrong" with that. Employees go rogue, to bad. I don't think it's Uber's plans to go all NSA on the drivers.


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## Tx rides (Sep 15, 2014)

DjTim said:


> You would be surprised. The last company I was with - we could track any smartphone (all 5200 of them) anywhere. We could log text message, we could really do anything. It's called "MDM" or Mobile Device Management.
> 
> The thing is, you need to trust employees, and that they won't go and do anything "wrong" with that. Employees go rogue, to bad. I don't think it's Uber's plans to go all NSA on the drivers.


I mean damning to their "just a software platform" defense. Yet another indicator they ARE managing drivers.


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## DjTim (Oct 18, 2014)

Tx rides said:


> I mean damning to their "just a software platform" defense. Yet another indicator they ARE managing drivers.


But the questions becomes "How"? There isn't a dispatcher perse. We would really need an IT person or someone from Uber to confirm it. Until then, we are just guessing and making some wild assumptions.

It's hard to type this out, versus having a verbal conversation - The last company I was with, I talked to many of the lower end employees - the front line folks. There were some WILD things they thought about IT. They thought we (as in IT) were recording their conversations. We were recording their badge swipes. We were tracking their GPS on the phones. We were recording their websites. We were doing XYZ to get them "fired" or whatever. NONE of that was 100% true. Things are logged because they needed to be, but not to track an employee. No one from any management group ever had access to this data - not even HR. Everything recorded is used in a past tense sense. 9 times out of 10 it was used to protect the company and employees against a customer accusation of breach of contracts or trying to get a bill reduced, and it took weeks of sifting through data. Requests were always denied to managers about seeing web logs or even door card swipes. Only HR could request, and even then the raw data was never passed to the manager. Every company I've ever worked for has worked like this from an IT perspective.

I'm not defending Uber here, I'm just saying we can't label Uber a bastard because of one bad actor (the employee above). I bet you that upper Uber management doesn't even know this is going on. I had to remove a Director of IT after an exhaustive investigation. All because the dipshit was reading e-mails between highly sensitive employees. The Director thought that was "his job". I was really floored when he said that. He thought his job was to "protect" the company by reading e-mails between internal employees. The look on this guys face was priceless. He really had no clue that he wasn't supposed to do this. Later we found he was taking call recordings and listening to them. This guy (the director) is why people mistrust or never trust anyone with tech skills. I also found he was reading my e-mails, and that pissed me off even more.


----------



## Tx rides (Sep 15, 2014)

DjTim said:


> But the questions becomes "How"? There isn't a dispatcher perse. We would really need an IT person or someone from Uber to confirm it. Until then, we are just guessing and making some wild assumptions.
> 
> It's hard to type this out, versus having a verbal conversation - The last company I was with, I talked to many of the lower end employees - the front line folks. There were some WILD things they thought about IT. They thought we (as in IT) were recording their conversations. We were recording their badge swipes. We were tracking their GPS on the phones. We were recording their websites. We were doing XYZ to get them "fired" or whatever. NONE of that was 100% true. Things are logged because they needed to be, but not to track an employee. No one from any management group ever had access to this data - not even HR. Everything recorded is used in a past tense sense. 9 times out of 10 it was used to protect the company and employees against a customer accusation of breach of contracts or trying to get a bill reduced, and it took weeks of sifting through data. Requests were always denied to managers about seeing web logs or even door card swipes. Only HR could request, and even then the raw data was never passed to the manager. Every company I've ever worked for has worked like this from an IT perspective.
> 
> I'm not defending Uber here, I'm just saying we can't label Uber a bastard because of one bad actor (the employee above). I bet you that upper Uber management doesn't even know this is going on. I had to remove a Director of IT after an exhaustive investigation. All because the dipshit was reading e-mails between highly sensitive employees. The Director thought that was "his job". I was really floored when he said that. He thought his job was to "protect" the company by reading e-mails between internal employees. The look on this guys face was priceless. He really had no clue that he wasn't supposed to do this. Later we found he was taking call recordings and listening to them. This guy (the director) is why people mistrust or never trust anyone with tech skills. I also found he was reading my e-mails, and that pissed me off even more.


First of all, I'm going on the assumption that the poster was being truthful, and responding based on that assumption. If "Community Managers" have the means to track drivers, another nail in the IC argument.

The Godview, in itself is disturbing, and also possibly negates their "software platform" argument independent of the driver involvement. They have made numerous moves which cross the line from software connection to facilitator. Their political positions alone could be argued in that matter.

As for labeling them as Bastards, the backing was peeled from that label for me nearly two years ago, regardless of how they manage their data  it goes back to their arrogance, their absolute disregard for local laws, I could go on...and on...but already have in this forum 

If they were just an "enablement platform", their rides would be offers, and drivers would be free to accept, or not. Deactivation would be based on issues like fraud, inappropriate acts, no-shows, etc. They are technically a transportation broker, and their earlier model, with the Black model was much closer to keeping with the employment classification requirements.

GroundLink, for example, is a transportation broker. They make not only offers, but set the terms of the transportation, and only permitted, professional companies are able to enter the contractual agreement to provide services to Ground Link customers. They don't have lists of drivers, they have lists of companies which employ drivers. It would be very difficult for my company to utilize a contractor to provide Ground Link services because we would have to tightly control how they provided the service. In fact it would be difficult to utilize any contractors because we have tight requirements for our service even when not handling farm-ins.

And lastly-since it is raining and I'm squandering time being lazy and drinking too much coffee...I'll wax philosophical and say this: If the courts rule in their favor, as many local governments have already, then my last hope that business principals matter will be finely shredded. They have been bare threads anyway over the last decade, but I held on to them anyway, believing that there was still a reward for doing right, following laws, working collaboratively to CHANGE laws, treating your employees like part of the company, valuing your customers, honoring commitments, etc... I had already lost a great deal of that spirit at my "Large Acronym Company" watching the decay of business principals, until I finally just quit - thinking - well now I'll be part of our OWN business and still do what is right, it pays off in the end. I feel like Linus waiting for the Great Pumpkin (or Charlie Brown, trying to kick the football!


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## DjTim (Oct 18, 2014)

Tx rides said:


> First of all, I'm going on the assumption that the poster was being truthful, and responding based on that assumption. If "Community Managers" have the means to track drivers, another nail in the IC argument.
> 
> The Godview, in itself is disturbing, and also possibly negates their "software platform" argument independent of the driver involvement. They have made numerous moves which cross the line from software connection to facilitator. Their political positions alone could be argued in that matter.
> 
> ...


I think I'll have to agree to disagree with what your saying - I'm just trying not to be so sensationalist about this particular incident. Because this site brings in new and old - I just want a level headed view. I'm all about bringing pitchforks out - when the time is right. The "Administrative" or "God View" on any platform is 100% possible. I am sure that UPS, FedEx, any transportation company has this ability. I know Georgia Pacific was using this technology to track their trucks in the late 90's. I could see how much pressure the drivers were applying to breaks and what gears the drivers were using. I know and have seen how Verizon, T-Mobile or any cell phone company can pin-point a cell phone related to a tower and now within a meter when GPS is involved. I would hope that Uber could track their drivers and riders - Uber just needs to be transparent on who has access to this information and how they use this information - this is the part that isn't clear.

I don't doubt the OP's story. I bet it's 100% true. But this is 1 community manager. If it was every manager in every city, then we got a big problem, and I want an employee paycheck.

Take away all the rhetoric that the press has been publishing (I don't trust the journalists as far as I can throw them) - we know that Uber is now too big to be called "just a startup". Uber is starting to see this, and as we all know already they need to start following the existing rules just like everyone else. It's always cool being the bad ass on the block, bringing in disruptive technology or ideas to a preconceived notion of how the world works. Uber need to move into the next phase, or maybe the phase we know needs to happen - lawsuits and regulation change. No one knows how much "blood shed" there will be. Right now, the drivers are taking the hits - because Uber is fighting on the front of competition. Uber should really be fighting on the regulation front and let the competitors sort it's way out along the way.

Until then - I'll take my 500 here and my 1000 there and walk away with a smile knowing that I've broken the law, but the law hasn't won LOL.


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## Just Some Guy (Jun 10, 2014)

Woober said:


> LookyLou nailed it. "God Mode". I always wonder if they are doling out pings based on their own criteria rather than closest car?


There used to be something on the website about how pings were based on a combination of distance _and_ driver rating. It hasn't said that for a while, but that doesn't mean that it's not the case... or that there aren't other criteria involved...


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## Jay2dresq (Oct 1, 2014)

This all makes me wonder... If this manager has time to single out one driver and watch them for days, then obviously Uber doesn't give them enough to do. In reality that position isn't needed. From an economic standpoint, it would probably have been cheaper to pay the driver the difference between the guarantee rate and their actual fares, than to pay a manager to watch their each and every move.


----------



## Sydney Uber (Apr 15, 2014)

DjTim said:


> But the questions becomes "How"? There isn't a dispatcher perse. We would really need an IT person or someone from Uber to confirm it. Until then, we are just guessing and making some wild assumptions.
> 
> It's hard to type this out, versus having a verbal conversation - The last company I was with, I talked to many of the lower end employees - the front line folks. There were some WILD things they thought about IT. They thought we (as in IT) were recording their conversations. We were recording their badge swipes. We were tracking their GPS on the phones. We were recording their websites. We were doing XYZ to get them "fired" or whatever. NONE of that was 100% true. Things are logged because they needed to be, but not to track an employee. No one from any management group ever had access to this data - not even HR. Everything recorded is used in a past tense sense. 9 times out of 10 it was used to protect the company and employees against a customer accusation of breach of contracts or trying to get a bill reduced, and it took weeks of sifting through data. Requests were always denied to managers about seeing web logs or even door card swipes. Only HR could request, and even then the raw data was never passed to the manager. Every company I've ever worked for has worked like this from an IT perspective.
> 
> I'm not defending Uber here, I'm just saying we can't label Uber a bastard because of one bad actor (the employee above). I bet you that upper Uber management doesn't even know this is going on. I had to remove a Director of IT after an exhaustive investigation. All because the dipshit was reading e-mails between highly sensitive employees. The Director thought that was "his job". I was really floored when he said that. He thought his job was to "protect" the company by reading e-mails between internal employees. The look on this guys face was priceless. He really had no clue that he wasn't supposed to do this. Later we found he was taking call recordings and listening to them. This guy (the director) is why people mistrust or never trust anyone with tech skills. I also found he was reading my e-mails, and that pissed me off even more.


An IT Director having access to call recordings, internal emails, movement logs etc, this would also mean that some lowly IT hack would also have access. Sure their usage and login's would be tracked, but who's watching those who can a shouldn't be watching those folk who think there being watched?


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## Just Some Guy (Jun 10, 2014)

Some people are very naive about technology, and how companies operate in the 21st century... of course they _can_ monitor our locations, and yes they _can_ hear anything that happens near the phone with the Uber app on it. Sure it may violate both Federal and local laws, but since when has a thing like that stopped Uber? Uber has the potential to be a major intelligence network that would rival the Vatican Intelligence Service_. _Do a Google search for _roving bug_ to learn about the kinds of things that are possible with current technology. Personally I'm used to being watched all the time, so it doesn't really bother me. I long ago accepted that there is no privacy in modern life.

Fnord


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## Tx rides (Sep 15, 2014)

DjTim said:


> I think I'll have to agree to disagree with what your saying - I'm just trying not to be so sensationalist about this particular incident. Because this site brings in new and old - I just want a level headed view. I'm all about bringing pitchforks out - when the time is right. The "Administrative" or "God View" on any platform is 100% possible. I am sure that UPS, FedEx, any transportation company has this ability. I know Georgia Pacific was using this technology to track their trucks in the late 90's. I could see how much pressure the drivers were applying to breaks and what gears the drivers were using. I know and have seen how Verizon, T-Mobile or any cell phone company can pin-point a cell phone related to a tower and now within a meter when GPS is involved. I would hope that Uber could track their drivers and riders - Uber just needs to be transparent on who has access to this information and how they use this information - this is the part that isn't clear.
> 
> I don't doubt the OP's story. I bet it's 100% true. But this is 1 community manager. If it was every manager in every city, then we got a big problem, and I want an employee paycheck.
> 
> ...


not interested in dead horses - lol - but again, rain and coffee makes me an annoying ass  Jjust want to point out: as you said:_ "The "Administrative" or "God View" on any platform is 100% possible. I am sure that UPS, FedEx, any transportation company has this ability"_

**THAT** is what I was saying all along - they are not just a "technology platform" - they are a transportation company, and continue to act like one in all areas except for accountability. 
Office365 is a technology platform, and certainly have the MEANS to to track what I do, but don't, and if anyone is, they sure as hell would not brag about it (more than once! )

I would like to say that I'm glad you earn whatever you earn, but cannot say that, unless you are legal in your area. Here, our chauffeurs must be permitted, they must have ID cards, take tests, etc. We must provide commercial insurance at all times when our vehicles are on the road, we pay $2.50 per pickup at the airport, our drivers are stopped and inspected within the city limits. Any effort on our part to skirt these regulations will result in instant fines and impound. They know our cars, and our drivers, so enforcement is like shooting fish in a barrel. I won't bother highlighting the other ridiculous regulations (like we have to own and maintain a stretch limousine, and we cannot run "economy" sedans) We pay unemployment and other payroll taxes, so obviously we are never going to be able to consistently offer cheap airport pickups with the current regulations. Those regulations by the way are not changing, they just carved a SPECIAL niche for Uber & Lyft, and neither of those companies have even completed the application to OPERATE legally in Austin.

So yeah, not really feeling a rush of "love" for those who are knowingly skirting the laws to unfairly compete with our company (that is not exclusive to Uber/Lyft - gypsies were running businesses from Craigslist for years) On the upside, I hope they continue with their surge rates because we have picked up many new clients in recent months. Newcomers, and even some who never really thought about car service until Uber news hit town, they tried it, got socked with $200+ transfer fees, then called us. Furthermore, we will have no problem qualifying as a "TNC" if we opt to do so, allowing us to compete "on demand" as we desire, unless the geniuses decide a company cannot be both. I don't anticipate that because one of the largest players in town is applying as TNC, we will probably let him iron out the details because he has more lawyers 

Good luck to you either way, DJTIM.


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## Tx rides (Sep 15, 2014)

Sydney Uber said:


> An IT Director having access to call recordings, internal emails, movement logs etc, this would also mean that some lowly IT hack would also have access. Sure their usage and login's would be tracked, but who's watching those who can a shouldn't be watching those folk who think there being watched?


Hopefully it is whoever has been watching the CIA, IRS and DOD in the USA! LOL! They cannot seem to keep any records straight!


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## drivernotfound (Nov 5, 2014)

Just Some Guy said:


> There used to be something on the website about how pings were based on a combination of distance _and_ driver rating. It hasn't said that for a while, but that doesn't mean that it's not the case... or that there aren't other criteria involved...


They know the pax's address. If they come from a rich neighborhood/Zillow house value, they could match with higher rated drivers (and even more expensive cars, since Uber knows that too. Even within the UberX ranks.) They could match poor passengers with lower quality vehicles. Not sure why they might have an incentive to do this, maybe increased customer satisfaction feedback?

I guess the only way to really know would be to have someone on the inside on their software team that gets to see the matching algorithms. (Maybe they even have some neural net regression analysis thrown in there, if they're smart.)


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## DjTim (Oct 18, 2014)

Jay2dresq said:


> This all makes me wonder... If this manager has time to single out one driver and watch them for days, then obviously Uber doesn't give them enough to do. In reality that position isn't needed. From an economic standpoint, it would probably have been cheaper to pay the driver the difference between the guarantee rate and their actual fares, than to pay a manager to watch their each and every move.


This is what I was pointing to.


Sydney Uber said:


> An IT Director having access to call recordings, internal emails, movement logs etc, this would also mean that some lowly IT hack would also have access. Sure their usage and login's would be tracked, but who's watching those who can a shouldn't be watching those folk who think there being watched?


In the case that I was talking about - generally you have a third party to audits on security access or review who has access to what. This is how it was brought to the attention of the companies management, and then I was brought in as another third party to do a full assessment, outside of the IT department and working under the financial group.

I can't speak to how Uber is auditing things - most companies keep that "secure". I am often times asked to review logs to help other IT people make sure that their folks aren't doing what we described above as well.


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## Sydney Uber (Apr 15, 2014)

DjTim said:


> This is what I was pointing to.
> 
> In the case that I was talking about - generally you have a third party to audits on security access or review who has access to what. This is how it was brought to the attention of the companies management, and then I was brought in as another third party to do a full assessment, outside of the IT department and working under the financial group.
> 
> I can't speak to how Uber is auditing things - most companies keep that "secure". I am often times asked to review logs to help other IT people make sure that their folks aren't doing what we described above as well.


Thanks for the insight DjTim.

If as a outside contractor you did come across communication that clearly indicated illegal/unlawful behaviour, who are you bound to report thst to?


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## DjTim (Oct 18, 2014)

Sydney Uber said:


> Thanks for the insight DjTim.
> 
> If as a outside contractor you did come across communication that clearly indicated illegal/unlawful behaviour, who are you bound to report thst to?


Depends on how you define "illegal". All company communications are just that - owned by the company, so anything along the lines of that, meaning internal stuff (monitoring of company equipment or employees) - no laws are actually broken. Employees are notified when they get a employee handbook or on-boarding documents. It's hard to compare this to what we are talking about here - relating this to Uber in general. I looked over the TOS stuff related to the Uber partner application, as well as the contract we are under - technically as contractors we give a lot of rights away to Uber. But this is also typical of any contractor conditions - you should see some of the NDA's and contract agreements I signed, they are about 100 times worse then what Uber has us agree to. I haven't seen anything egregious related to Uber's contract. I've always consulted a lawyer for NDA's and contracts with the IT work I do. I have to be real careful in what I can disclose even for employment & contract history.

So to cover the illegal stuff - only in the cases of credit card fraud or identity theft are authorities notified depending on the extent. Generally it's external parties perpetrating fraud against a company, and depending on where the fraud occurred it could be anything from local/county/state authorities or the FBI. If it's just an "internal" breach, no one really needs to be notified unless there are laws requiring it and most states don't require disclosure if it's an internal matter. In the case that I listed above, the director was terminated - we didn't notify any internal employees that their communications were reviewed by this employee.


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## Yougottabekiddingme! (Sep 7, 2014)

There's no need to be Micro Creepy, these guys make an easy job hard
Creating their own problems. there's no great minds at work here. 
More great PR for UBER. How ****ing stupid are these people. 
Guy needs a beat down FTOM what I can see


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## chi1cabby (May 28, 2014)

*Uber Drivers Have Privacy Problems Too*
BY POLLY MOSENDZ 
http://www.newsweek.com/uber-taxi-e...kalanick-emil-michael-josh-mohrer-uber-285642


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## CLAkid (Oct 23, 2014)

iumichael said:


> On my way home from work tonight, I got the creepiest phone call I've received in a long time.
> 
> Uber started offering weekday guarantees for my city this week. Terms are average at least 1 trip per hour, 80% acceptance rate, all rides must originate in my city, etc. I logged on, got a ping, did the trip, went back online afterwards, didn't get anymore pings so I headed to my house with the app on. I live on the edge of the city, but with the same city's mailing address.
> 
> ...


This is beyond shocking. Like you said, you met the terms of the payout. Why can't we sit at home and accept the rides? Passengers are being picked up regardless of where we originate from. It is really hard to believe that someone would spy on one Uber driver. If they are so worried about the payout, then why have the program in the first place? Plus, they are paying the spy to report on us. So none of this makes much sense. To me, this is beyond Big Brother. What are they going to do next, watch how we drive and report infractions to the head office?


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## drivernotfound (Nov 5, 2014)

CLAkid said:


> What are they going to do next, watch how we drive and report infractions to the head office?


Why would they go through all that trouble? Just deactivate the driver. Can't log in one day. And why would they have a human go over all these patterns to decide when someone is driving erratically? The NSA doesn't have humans sift through all the data. They use _algorithms_.


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## Markopolo (Sep 23, 2014)

This may be already made statement but do you sign-up for the minimum hourly guarantee? You to sign-up to qualift!


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## big Dave (Nov 21, 2014)

iumichael said:


> On my way home from work tonight, I got the creepiest phone call I've received in a long time.
> 
> Uber started offering weekday guarantees for my city this week. Terms are average at least 1 trip per hour, 80% acceptance rate, all rides must originate in my city, etc. I logged on, got a ping, did the trip, went back online afterwards, didn't get anymore pings so I headed to my house with the app on. I live on the edge of the city, but with the same city's mailing address.
> 
> ...


creepy, but it's the 21st Century - watch movie "Brazil"


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## DriverJ (Sep 1, 2014)

God these people suck. They're people right? Not androids?


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## CLAkid (Oct 23, 2014)

it seems that very little makes sense anymore, especially with corporate America.


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## DriversOfTheWorldUnite (Nov 11, 2014)

DriverJ said:


> God these people suck. They're people right? Not androids?


I have a terrible feeling that Travis and his ilk are neither human nor android.

They are....the lizard people.


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## prdelnik666 (Sep 17, 2014)

You can't trust a company that runs their business out of paring lots and rented rooms in different hotels. No phones to contact what's ever.


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## Yougottabekiddingme! (Sep 7, 2014)

**** they're guarantee, they lie cheat creep spy and steal , face it they're creepy


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## djnsmith7 (Aug 10, 2014)

It's pretty damn creepy that a manager would be monitoring your status. We are 1099's, not W-2 employees, which means we work on our time, at our leisure. I wonder what their justification would be for this level of conduct.


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## DriversOfTheWorldUnite (Nov 11, 2014)

prdelnik666 said:


> You can't trust a company that runs their business out of paring lots and rented rooms in different hotels. No phones to contact what's ever.


Yeah, what are they, hookers?


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## Casuale Haberdasher (Dec 7, 2014)

[QUOTE="Roogy, 
THREAD #46/ NOOGIE: ROFL, I am!


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## MrsUberJax (Sep 2, 2014)

Wow, this is so beyond UNacceptable...If I were you... that conversation would somehow make it to the airways... I don't know.. Twitter usually works... @UBER.. I guess "#GODMODE" is ok if you are only "STALKING DRIVERS AT HOME"... HMMM... @LYFT, @UBER, @theRideshareguy, @RIDESHAREDIVA, @SideCar @NYT @Slate @BUZZFEED @RIDESHAREDASH @theverge [email protected]


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## Bart McCoy (Nov 4, 2014)

i mean GPS is the whole key to making Uber work, are folks really suprised that humans instead of a computer actually look and see where cars are at?


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## MrsUberJax (Sep 2, 2014)

Excuse me Mr. McCoy, but GPS is what makes Uber work, yes, "officially" when the computer matches up a driver with a passenger. What we are talking about in this thread is "HUMAN BEINGS" utilizing "GOD MODE" to view employees and members of the community. #GOD MODE is UBER's own terminology - used to describe the ability to view peoples private comings and goings - searchable when their phone is on and Uber is running. I'd bet when you carry around the phone and Uber is running in the background, they can see where you are on a map regardless of whether or not you are in an Uber. They describe GOD MODE as being highly restricted, only available to Ubers most trusted employees. Whatever the case, when an Uber employee uses the system to track an employee's comings and goings from their own home, (without their permission) there is a problem. Perhaps you need a refresher. http://www.buzzfeed.com/johanabhuiy...op-new-york-executive-for-privacy#.icLD4ly76a


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## Bart McCoy (Nov 4, 2014)

MrsUberJax said:


> Excuse me Mr. McCoy, but GPS is what makes Uber work, yes, "officially" when the computer matches up a driver with a passenger. What we are talking about in this thread is "HUMAN BEINGS" utilizing "GOD MODE" to view employees and members of the community. #GOD MODE is UBER's own terminology - used to describe the ability to view peoples private comings and goings - searchable when their phone is on and Uber is running. I'd bet when you carry around the phone and Uber is running in the background, they can see where you are on a map regardless of whether or not you are in an Uber. They describe GOD MODE as being highly restricted, only available to Ubers most trusted employees. Whatever the case, when an Uber employee uses the system to track an employee's comings and goings from their own home, (without their permission) there is a problem. Perhaps you need a refresher. http://www.buzzfeed.com/johanabhuiy...op-new-york-executive-for-privacy#.icLD4ly76a


Here's the thing, comings and goings....basically they were tracking him while he was at work(app on),and only seems more intrusive because, instead of riding around for pings, he was at home. I mean Uber works by GPS location to determine who to send the pings to...(whos closest). So you telling me, anytime someone looks at the grid map and checks the GPS to see if that driver is actually going towards the pax, or away from the pax, then Uber is invading their privacy? really?

Basically what I'm saying is, as long as he has the app on, you should have no reasonable expectation of privacy(whereas it relates to GPS location). I mean hell, if you turn on any rider app you can see where local Uber cars are all the time(just dont know the drivers name and car info)

So just to clear this up,are folks arguing over Uber using "god mode" to see where you're at at any time you have the app on? or any time at all?(me peronsally only use GPS to Uber but non-ubering only use it if im mapping to somewhere. i dont just leave it on). Because if the OP claims he wanst even home at the time Uber said he was, then maybe Uber was bluffing and not using "god mode"? I mean if Uber is looking at his GPS and it shows he's home...then he's home. But OP says otherwise, so was Uber really checking his GPS in the first place since the OP disputes it?

But again, this "job" requires GPS,not sure why anyone would be surprised it could be used to track you lol


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## UberHammer (Dec 5, 2014)

Bart McCoy said:


> Here's the thing, comings and goings....basically they were tracking him while he was at work(app on),and only seems more intrusive because, instead of riding around for pings, he was at home. I mean Uber works by GPS location to determine who to send the pings to...(whos closest). So you telling me, anytime some looks at the grip map and checks the GPS to see if that driver is actually going towards the pax, or away from the pax, then Uber is invading their privacy? really?
> 
> Basically what I'm saying is, as long as he has the app on, you should have no reasonable expectation of privacy(whereas it relates to GPS location). I mean hell, if you turn on any rider app you can see where local Uber cars are all the time(just dont know the drivers name and car info)
> 
> ...


I don't have any issue of it being a privacy thing. Obviously being online, data about your location needs to be sent to Uber.

The issue I have is that as an independent contractor the decision of when and where to work is mine and mine alone, as long as Uber allows their software to let me login at the time and location I decide.

If Uber doesn't like when and where this driver was logged on, SO WHAT?!?!? How is the driver doing anything wrong?

If it's a guarantee question, if he's in the area required by the guarantee, then again, SO WHAT?!?!?! Just because it's busier elsewhere in the guarantee area doesn't mean Uber can tell the guy he's wrong for being where he is. Drivers aren't Uber employees. Uber isn't their boss. As long as Uber allows the driver to be online when and where the driver decides, then there is ZERO reason for this Uber manager to go into God mode, identify the driver and watch him for days. The Uber manager is clearly a DICK!


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