Ride-hailing service provider Uber has released new guidelines for its rider partners around the world.
The company announced that the riders will need to submit a selfie wearing mask before starting the journey. A similar guideline had been earlier rolled out for its driver partners – to share their selfie in mask before starting a trip.
Since its resumption post the lock down, Uber has introduced new guidelines to ensure the safety of their passengers and driver partners.
In May, Uber had introduced a ‘no mask no ride’ policy for its drivers and riders. During the campaign though the drivers were required to share their selfies in a mask, the riders were exempted from it.
Uber does not mandate all riders to submit a selfie. Only if a driver complains that a rider is not wearing a mask the firm will ask the rider to submit a selfie before boarding the cab next time.
According to the new guidelines, both riders and drivers will be able to cancel the trip if they don’t feel safe without having to pay any penalty.
Uber does not use facial recognition technology to detect masks but it detects the mask as an object. The shared image with Uber will only be stored on the platform for reference for 96 hours, after which it will be permanently deleted.
Uber will set up the mask verification policy by the end of September in the US and Canada. It will be gradually rolled to the other locations globally in the coming months.
