Ride-sharing company Uber has unveiled a new safety tool designed to give parents greater visibility into their teenage passengers’ trips. The feature, announced in late August, enables guardians to access live video feeds from their drivers’ cameras during active rides. Both the teen passenger and the driver receive notifications when this monitoring capability is activated, and the video stream automatically terminates once the journey concludes.
The live video capability represents an expansion of Uber’s existing teen account protections, which launched in 2023 for riders between 13 and 17 years old. The feature operates only when drivers have previously enabled Uber’s Record My Ride functionality and opted into live streaming. Parents can only view these streams through linked family accounts, and the video remains encrypted so it cannot be accessed after the trip ends. Drivers maintain the ability to disable this feature at any time through their account settings.
Currently undergoing testing in select metropolitan areas including Atlanta, Phoenix, and Portland, the tool is expected to roll out nationwide in the coming weeks. The launch comes amid ongoing scrutiny of the company’s safety record, following legal cases and settlements related to passenger incidents. Earlier this year, Uber implemented enhanced background check procedures and committed to permanently removing drivers with serious violations from the platform.
Originally reported by Mashable →
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