Uber tests to verify rides with a PIN

When using ridesharing apps like Uber, people might accidentally get into the wrong car. This happened to me, and it was embarrassing. Scenarios like this could sometimes take a very wrong turn -- it could be get people killed .

Thankfully, Uber is working on this for safer rides.

I came across this unreleased feature in Uber’s Android app by reverse-engineering and playing with the code underneath.

This new setting page is titled “Verify your rides with a PIN” and described as “For safer rides. before you get in a car, give a PIN to your driver. Get in the car only after you see a message that verifies it’s the right ride.”

I am thrilled to see the continuous effort Uber has been making to ensure/improve the safety! If rolled out, this could make dishonesty more obvious, letting the riders know whether they are getting into the right car. I just hope the time range of the “Only at night” option will be adjustable in the future.

The time it takes to develop and release experimental features like this varies. Experimental features could come and go. But I really hope to be able to use this in the future!