Rides feel routine. The numbers say risk is real. Sealed court records reviewed by The New York Times show Uber received 400,181 reports of sexual assault or misconduct in the U.S. from 2017 to 2022.
🧭 What’s New: The Times reports newly unsealed case files show far more complaints than Uber has disclosed in its public safety reports.
- Court filings, cited by The Times, put the tally at 400,181 reports in five years, roughly one every eight minutes.
- Uber’s published reports for that period counted 12,522 “serious” sexual assaults, a narrower slice of incidents.
🚨 Why It Matters: These trips happen in your city and on your block. Safety decisions in one app can change how you get home, what you pay, and who feels safe getting in the car.
🧩 What Uber Says: Uber states most reports involve non-physical or lower-level conduct and represent a tiny share of 6.3 billion U.S. trips over those years. The company points to app tools and training it says reduce harm.
- Uber says about three-quarters of the 400,181 reports involve behavior such as unwanted comments or explicit language.
- The company says these figures are unaudited and may include false reports. Uber also says serious sexual assault reports have fallen since 2019.
🕰️ Between the Lines: Internal discussions described in court records show safety choices weighed against growth and legal risk, The Times reports.
- Records reviewed by the newspaper say Uber studied patterns for years: most reports late at night, on weekends, near bars; women most often victimized; men most often accused, including drivers and riders with prior complaints.
🛠️ What’s Changing for Riders: Uber has tested new tools, according to court records and company statements.
- Pairing women riders with women drivers reduced incidents in tests, per the filings. Uber is now piloting this in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Detroit.
- Uber cites features like GPS tracking, optional audio recording, and a quick 911 button. The company says it also trains drivers on sexual misconduct.
📚 Catch Up: Both major ride-hailing apps face scrutiny on assault reporting and response.
- Lyft has reported thousands of cases and says such reports are rare.
- A 2024 Government Accountability Office report says sexual violence is widely underreported across transportation and there is no national tracking system.
How to Read and Understand the News
Truth doesn’t bend because we dislike it.
Facts don’t vanish when they make us uncomfortable.
Events happen whether we accept them or not.
Good reporting challenges us. The press isn’t choosing sides — it’s relaying what official, verified sources say. Blaming reporters for bad news is like blaming a thermometer for a fever.
Americans have a history of misunderstanding simple things. In the 1980s, A&W rolled out a 1/3-pound burger to compete with McDonald’s Quarter Pounder. It failed because too many people thought 1/3 was smaller than 1/4. If we can botch basic math, we can certainly misread the news.
Before dismissing a story, ask yourself:
- What evidence backs this?
- Am I reacting to facts or feelings?
- What would change my mind?
- Am I just shooting the messenger?
And one more: Am I assuming bias just because I don’t like the story?
Smart news consumers seek truth, not comfort.
B.T. Clark
B.T. Clark is an award-winning journalist and the Publisher of The Georgia Sun. He has 25 years of experience in journalism and served as Managing Editor of Neighbor Newspapers in metro Atlanta for 15 years and Digital Director at Times-Journal Inc. for 8 years. His work has appeared in several newspapers throughout the state including Neighbor Newspapers, The Cherokee Tribune and The Marietta Daily Journal. He is a Georgia native and a fifth-generation Georgian.
