History of Uber in Timeline

Uber Technologies, Inc. is a multinational transportation company headquartered in San Francisco. Operating in roughly 70 countries and 15,000 cities, Uber provides ride-hailing, food delivery, courier, and freight transport services. As the world's largest ridesharing company, it boasts over 150 million monthly active users and 6 million active drivers and couriers, coordinating approximately 28 million trips daily and 47 billion since its 2010 inception. In 2023, Uber reported a take rate of 28.7% for mobility and 18.3% for food delivery.

September 2014: Uber Discovers Data Leak

In September 2014, Uber discovered a data leak, but waited more than five months to notify the affected individuals.

October 2014: Sarah Lacy accuses Uber of sexism and misogyny in its advertising

In October 2014, Sarah Lacy, editor of PandoDaily, accused Uber of sexism and misogyny in its advertising.

2014: Uber started posting hundreds of millions or billions of dollars in losses

From 2014 until 2022 except for 2018, Uber has posted hundreds of millions or billions of dollars in losses.

February 27, 2015: Uber Admits to Data Breach

On February 27, 2015, Uber admitted that it had suffered a data breach more than nine months prior.

March 2016: Study finds Uber rides reduce congestion in Los Angeles and Seattle

In March 2016, a study found that in Los Angeles and Seattle the passenger occupancy for Uber services is higher than that of taxi services, and concluded that Uber rides reduce congestion on the premise that they replace taxi rides.

2016: Ransom paid for data breach

In 2016, Joe Sullivan arranged with Travis Kalanick's knowledge, to pay a ransom for the 2016 data breach as a "bug bounty" to conceal its true nature.

2016: Uber Hired Ergo to Investigate Plaintiffs in Lawsuit

In 2016, Uber hired Ergo to secretly investigate plaintiffs involved in a class action lawsuit which resulted in a judge throwing out evidence obtained in a fraudulent manner.

2016: Data breach disclosed personal information of drivers and customers

In 2016, a data breach disclosed the personal information of 600,000 drivers and 57 million customers.

February 19, 2017: Susan Fowler publishes post about sexual harassment

On February 19, 2017, former Uber engineer Susan Fowler published on her website that she was propositioned for sex by a manager and subsequently threatened with termination of employment by another manager if she continued to report the incident.

February 27, 2017: Amit Singhal resigns after sexual harassment claim disclosure failure

On February 27, 2017, Amit Singhal, Uber's Senior Vice President of Engineering, was forced to resign after he failed to disclose a sexual harassment claim against him that occurred while he served as Vice President of Google Search.

June 2017: Uber Fires Over 20 Employees, Kalanick Takes Leave of Absence, Michael Departs

In June 2017, after investigations, Uber fired over 20 employees. Kalanick took an indefinite leave of absence and Emil Michael, a senior vice president, also departed the company.

July 2017: Uber receives a five-star privacy rating from the Electronic Frontier Foundation

In July 2017, Uber received a five-star privacy rating from the Electronic Frontier Foundation.

July 2017: Study indicates Uber's traffic increase may exceed its economic benefits

In July 2017, a study indicated that the increase in traffic caused by Uber generates collective costs in lost time in congestion, increased pollution, and increased accident risks that can exceed the economy and revenue generated by the service.

September 2017: Uber criticized for tracking customers' locations after ride ends, reverses policy

In September 2017, Uber was harshly criticized by the Electronic Frontier Foundation for a controversial policy of tracking customers' locations even after a ride ended, forcing the company to reverse its policy.

November 2017: Uber Reveals 2016 Data Breach

In November 2017, Uber revealed that in 2016, a data breach had disclosed the personal information of 600,000 drivers and 57 million customers.

July 2018: Study finds Uber and Lyft are creating more traffic and congestion

In July 2018, a study found that Uber and Lyft are creating more traffic and congestion.

August 2018: Uber agrees to pay $7 million to settle claims of gender discrimination, harassment, and hostile work environment

In August 2018, Uber agreed to pay a total of $7 million to settle claims of gender discrimination, harassment, and hostile work environment, with 480 employees and former employees receiving $10,700 each and 56 of those employees and former employees receiving an additional $33,900 each.

September 2018: Uber Pays $148 Million for Data Breach Settlement

In September 2018, in the largest multi-state settlement of a data breach, Uber paid $148 million to the Federal Trade Commission.

November 2018: Uber Fined £385,000 by Information Commissioner's Office

In November 2018, Uber's British divisions were fined £385,000 (reduced to £308,000) by the Information Commissioner's Office.

2018: Uber Exited from markets in Russia, China, and Southeast Asia

In 2018, Uber exited from the markets in Russia, China, and Southeast Asia in exchange for stakes in rival businesses.

September 2019: Study finds taxis contribute less to congestion and pollution in downtown areas

In September 2019, a study found that taxis had lower rider waiting time and vehicle empty driving time and contribute less to congestion and pollution in downtown areas.

December 2019: Kalanick Resigns from Uber Board of Directors and Sells Shares

In December 2019, Kalanick resigned from the board of directors of the company and sold his shares.

2020: US Department of Justice announces criminal charges against Joe Sullivan

In 2020, the US Department of Justice announced criminal charges against former Chief Security Officer Joe Sullivan for obstruction of justice related to the 2016 data breach.

2021: Study finds ridehailing services can reduce air pollution costs but increase other costs

A 2021 study found that shifting private vehicle travel to ridehailing services can reduce air pollution costs, on average, but the increased costs from crash risk, congestion, climate change and noise outweigh these benefits.

2022: Uber had US$32.11 billion in assets and $24.03 billion in liabilities

By the end of 2022, Uber had US$32.11 billion in assets and $24.03 billion in liabilities.

February 2023: Uber drivers strike to protest wages and fees

In February 2023, Uber drivers went on strike in the US and UK to protest wages and fees, joined by drivers from Lyft and DoorDash delivery workers.

2023: Uber Posts Annual Operating Profits in 2023

In 2023, Uber posted annual operating profits, totaling $1.88 billion, after accumulating $31.5 billion in operating losses since 2014.

January 2024: Uber fined 10 million euros by Dutch Data Protection Authority

In January 2024, Uber was fined 10 million euros ($11 million) by the Dutch Data Protection Authority for violating privacy regulations pertaining to the personal data of its drivers.

February 2024: MDL Established Against Uber for Sexual Assault Lawsuits

In February 2024, a multidistrict litigation (MDL) was established in the Northern District of California against Uber Technologies, Inc., consolidating numerous claims from among the more than 3,000 sexual assault lawsuits filed against the company.

March 2024: Uber Emphasizes Advertising

In March 2024, The Wall Street Journal reported a trend of popular service apps like Uber emphasizing higher margin advertising to increase profits by personalizing content based on user data.

August 2024: Uber fined €290m by Dutch Data Protection Authority for GDPR breach

In August 2024, Uber was fined €290m euros ($324 million) by the Dutch Data Protection Authority for transferring the personal data of European drivers to US servers in breach of the GDPR.

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