LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Uber will be expanding an in-app safety feature that allows drivers and riders to record audio during trips to users in Little Rock.
The feature has been tested in several cities across the country since December 2021.
The feature can be accessed in the Safety Toolkit in the app. Once enabled, users will have the option to record audio by tapping a blue shield icon on the map screen and hitting “Start” on the “Record Audio” option.
“We are excited to bring this important feature to more cities across the US,” said Andi Pimentel Dunn, Product Manager at Uber.
Once a recording is completed, the audio file is encrypted and stored directly on the user's device.
“We hope that by expanding this tool, we can continue to help give riders and drivers peace of mind and encourage more comfortable interactions while on trips,” Dunn added.
To help protect users' privacy, no one will be able to listen to the recording, including Uber, unless submitted to the company through a safety report.
If you ever find yourself feeling unsafe during an Uber ride, you can choose to record audio.
"We built this feature to immediately encrypt the audio file and store it directly on the user’s phone, ensuring that no one, not even Uber, is able to access the recording unless a user submits it to us to review," explained Uttara Sivaram, Head of Privacy and Security Public Policy. "And if a driver chooses to enable this feature, it sends a message to the rider, alerting them that audio may be recorded during their trip."
The majority of riders and drivers reported that this feature helped them feel safer when using Uber.