Something else for Uber users to fear -- driver tries to rob home after airport ride
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I've described the many flaws in Ubernomics before, and you've about sexual assault allegations. Here's a new Uber problem that users should understand. A Colorado man has been arrested and accused of returning to a passenger's home after dropping her off at the airport to burglarize the home, seemingly because he believed the place would be empty. The victim's roommate was home and stopped the alleged crime. You can read more at Denver station KUSA or at The Denver Post.
I have a lot of concerns about Uber because I think it is using unfair market tactics that could have serious long-term negative impacts on both taxis and mass transportation. I wish those issues received more focus. Understandably, Uber crime gets all the attention. In fact, it even ended up as the plotline in a recent CSI:Cyber TV episode.
Let's be clear: Anyone can use information gleaned from digital cookie crumbs and try to rob your house. That was the point of a website named "PleaseRobMe" a few years ago. People do all kinds of dumb things that let potential criminals know they won't be home for long stretches. I'll bet there's a "Yea! A week in Mexico!" post in your Facebook wall right now. So it's not fair to overstate the Uber element of this alleged crime. A taxi driver dispatched to your home for an airport run could pull the same stunt. However, there are several items to consider here.
Anyone can be an Uber driver. That's the point of Uber. There's no permitting process, no licensing, no medallion to buy, and so on. Professional taxi drivers can be criminals too...many are petty criminals, which is the real reason Uber exists in the first place. But outside a cursory background check, the kind I've often criticized for their inaccuracy, Uber drivers can come from anywhere. They make almost no up-front investment to join. Obviously, you're more likely to get a creep or criminal with so little barrier to entry than with a firm that requires real investment by drivers.
What should you do? The alleged criminal in this case was obviously not very smart. While you can imagine he might have gotten away with the crime once, if he tried this three or four times, someone would have figured out the pattern. There is no reason to believe there's a rash of Uber robberies like this, or will be. Still, some common-sense precautions might be wise. If you can, when heading to the airport, leave from a neighhbor's house, or the office, or a main street near your home, as you might when flagging a taxi. I always ask Uber drivers how long they've been with the company (a shocking number say, 'A few weeks.'). If the driver is relatively new, I perk up my spidey sense for long routes or other shenanigans. Someone who's been with Uber for a while has a lot more to lose from misbehaving than a newbie. And while a driver can obviously lie, it's pretty easy to tell during normal conversation if someone is a vet Uber driver or not. (What was your worst passenger? Are you making enough money to do this full time?). At a bare minimum, be vague about your trip, and it's always worthwhile leaving the impression that someone else is home, or you will be back quickly, or you have very observant neighbors, or you have a lot of cameras installed, or....you get the idea.
Be careful out there. I think Uber has great potential, if it doesn't destroy itself and the concept in the process.