![\"After](\"https:\/\/wp-assets.futurism.com\/2019\/09\/driver-ubers-algorithm-assaulted-passenger-300x158.jpg\")
<\/div>Terrifying Flaws<\/h2>
In December 2018, a man driving an authorized Uber vehicle picked up an intoxicated woman leaving a Christmas party — and then brought her to his home and raped her. But the man, who The Age <\/a><\/em>reports<\/a> was sentenced to five and a half years in prison on Wednesday, was not an authorized Uber driver. Rather, he was able to easily fool Uber’s verification system by holding up a photo of a real driver.<\/p> In other words, the AI technology that Uber uses to verify that its drivers are who they claim to be — like Amazon delivery drivers<\/a>, Uber contractors take a selfie when signing on — wasn’t sophisticated enough to spot a printed headshot. It’s a horrifying story that illustrates the perils of big tech offloading security to dodgy AI systems.<\/p> Uber told Business Insider<\/em><\/a> that it deployed a fix in response to the December incident.<\/p> The company hired an undisclosed number of humans to review the driver-verifying selfies this year, it said — and also implemented better AI.<\/p> Apparently, it works — The Age<\/em> reports that drivers posting in online forums are talking less about operating scam rings and more about how difficult it is to get the system to approve a selfie.<\/p> But it all raises the question of why the improved security wasn’t in place from the start — the unauthorized driver may have been fooling Uber’s security protocols since 2016, according to The Age<\/em>.<\/p> READ MORE: <\/strong>Uber introduces human reviewers to crack down on drivers evading security selfie system with printed photos after Australian rape case<\/a> [Business Insider<\/em>]<\/p> More on Uber drivers:<\/strong> Uber and Lyft Still Allow Racist Behavior, but Not as Much as Taxi Services<\/a><\/em><\/p> The post A Driver Tricked Uber’s Algorithm, Sexually Assaulted a Passenger<\/a> appeared first on Futurism<\/a>.<\/p> Read more: Terrifying Flaws In December 2018, a man driving an authorized Uber vehicle picked up an intoxicated woman leaving a Christmas party \u2014 and then brought her to his home and raped her. But the man, who The Age reports was sentenced to five and a half years in prison on Wednesday, was not an authorized Uber driver Continue reading De-Automating<\/h2>
Higher Standards<\/h2>
A Driver Tricked Uber’s Algorithm, Sexually Assaulted a Passenger<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"