App-based taxi company Uber will improve safety features on the app. This follows reports of recent attacks on passengers, leading to the South African public hesitating to use the service.
This weekend, the South African Police Service said it had made a breakthrough in cases of people who were attacked earlier this year while using Uber.
In July, a 64-year-old woman was raped after getting into what she thought was an Uber in Johannesburg, near Montecasino.
In August, a couple was kidnapped after ordering an Uber ride home after a night out in Sunninghill, Johannesburg. Two men were hiding in the boot and pushed the seats forward. The couple were attacked and the woman raped, after being taken to an ATM to draw money.
Two suspects have been arrested in connection with these attacks; one is a legitimate Uber driver.
Cleared all checks
Uber issued a statement saying: "First and foremost, our thoughts continue to be with the riders and their families, with whom we've been in contact from the start. We are grateful to police for their work to bring these two individuals to justice, one of who was a former driver-partner.
"This individual's arrest is the result of an investigation involving close collaboration between Uber and local law enforcement." The company said the investigation is still ongoing and it is therefore limited in what it can say.
But Uber did say the driver in question cleared all background checks and held a professional driver's permit. "There was no evidence of a prior criminal record," it notes.
"At no time leading up to the attacks was the suspect's profile matched to provide Uber rides to any of the victims. As soon as there was any suspicion he may be involved in the incidents, as a precaution, his account and access to the platform was blocked.
"When we identified the suspect after an internal investigation, we notified the police immediately."
An Uber spokesperson says: "If there is any consolation after these terrible crimes it is that our technology, which includes the tracking and recording of every minute and metre taken using Uber, was useful in part of the evidence which led to this arrest.
"We have a dedicated incident response team, GPS-tracking and many other technology advances to improve safety before, during and after the ride."
The company has also said it will issue safety updates as early as this week.
Meanwhile, it has urged customers to always check and confirm all driver and vehicle details before getting into a vehicle, share their estimated time of arrival (through a feature available on the app) with family or friends, and report any incidents to law enforcement as soon as they happen.
Ongoing issues
This weekend, two Twitter users spoke out about recent experiences involving Uber drivers.
Zee Yako called for the company to screen its drivers after her friend was attacked by a driver and is now in hospital.
Mbali Ntuli, a KwaZulu-Natal Democratic Alliance councillor, tweeted that a driver had become angry and abusive when she asked him to open his boot, so she could check no one was in it, before she got into the car, so she cancelled the Uber ride.
?She said: "I think Uber is amazing but criminals will always find a way to ruin things. We must be vigilant."
South Africa is not the first country to report incidents. Here is a list of reported attacks by Uber or Lyft drivers in the US.
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