22 Jul Privacy Concerns with Uber & Lyft
Imagine you get into an Uber or Lyft, have what appears to be a pleasant conversation with your driver and get dropped off at your home. Later, you find out that your entire interaction, from the moment you walked up to when you walked to your front door, was recorded and played live to the internet for thousands of viewers. The information on the video includes your name, address and what you look like. Terrifying for anyone, but especially women. This is a recent example of the privacy concerns with Uber & Lyft, especially as people feel the need to put everything online.
STL Today ran the full story, but it confirmed the growing privacy concerns with Uber & Lyft. The driver live-streamed the entire ride, from start to finish, on his twitch account to thousands of viewers. As can probably be imagined, viewers quickly began commenting on the people in derogatory ways, especially the women. Technically what the driver did was not illegal because Missouri is a one-party consent state, meaning only one of the participants has to consent to the recording for it to be legal. There is an exception if the person is nude or partly nude, as was the case in the alleged incident with former Governor Greitens. That being said, it was clearly wrong and the victims understandably felt violated. If you fear you were a victim in this case, click the full article to find out what to do.
Understanding Missouri privacy laws are tricky because of the one-party consent rules, however, be aware that anything you do or say could be recorded. This applies in all situations. Also, if you ever have privacy concerns with Uber & Lyft, you always have the option to get out and cancel the ride. While there is a threat of having your account suspended, it is important to be safe. Plus, there are plenty of competitors out there.
This story about the Uber driver is very troubling but I hope you now have a better understanding of Missouri recording laws. Thank you for reading.
Tarun B. Rana, Esq.
Address: 655 Craig Rd, Ste 252, St. Louis, MO 63141
Phone: 314-329-7690
Facsimile: 314-735-4097
Email: tarun@ranalawgroup.com
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