Uber finally lets you delete Uber without having to beg
Were you on Team #DeleteUber but never actually deleted the app? Or are you just now realizing that Uber is a company full of many damning problems?
Well, you're in luck. Uber is making it easier for you to delete the app from your smartphone.
Uber users can now delete the app directly from their smartphone without having to contact customer support. According to TechCrunch, this process was called "Dear John" internally and was designed over the last year (therefore long before #DeleteUber was trending across social media).
Uber is still putting a fail safe in. Uber will retain a user's data for 30 days after they opt to delete their account. So, if you change your mind (as in perhaps someone from Harry Potter uses a pensieve to pull your memories of all the corrupt things they have done), you can restore your account.
Prior to this update, Uber users had to contact Uber and customer service representatives had to deal with each request individually. There was no automated system, like exists now. That became a massive problem when 500,000 people requested to delete their accounts following the company's actions during a protest over President Donald Trump's travel ban, The New York Times reported.
Beyond making it easier to delete Uber, the app is introducing more privacy features. Users can now choose, within the app, to no longer receive notifications for ride updates or for discounts.
Uber is also making it easier for users to understand, again within the app, how much of their location data Uber knows. No, it's not letting you limit that. You can either select always or never for location tracking (but you need it on to use the app effectively, as in you would have to know exact address of Point A and Point B and you couldn't track the driver in real-time — so good luck checking never). Uber users also can decide if they want friends to be able to access their location data, as in use Uber's people to people feature.
Each of these features will become available to users over the coming weeks, according to TechCrunch.
This post was updated to clarify what happens when you check never for location services on Uber.
Topics Uber
Kerry Flynn is a business reporter for Mashable covering the tech industry. She previously reported on social media companies, mobile apps and startups for International Business Times. She has also written for The Huffington Post, Forbes and Money magazine. Kerry studied environmental science and economics at Harvard College, where she led The Harvard Crimson's metro news and design teams and played mellophone in the Band. When not listening to startup pitches, she runs half-marathons, plays with puppies and pretends to like craft beer.
