Imagine a software so cunning it could outsmart regulators and keep a company operating in restricted areas. In the mid-2010s, Uber did just that with a covert tool called Greyball.
This tool was designed to evade local transportation authorities by identifying and blocking their attempts to book rides.Greyball used sophisticated methods to pinpoint these officials, such as monitoring app usage near government buildings, analyzing credit card details, and even scrutinizing social media profiles. Once flagged, these users were shown a fake version of the app, displaying ghost cars or no available rides, effectively thwarting their enforcement efforts.
The clandestine operation came to light in 2017, thanks to investigative journalism by The New York Times, sparking outrage and leading to multiple investigations, including a federal probe by the U.S.
Department of Justice. Uber's admission and subsequent promise to cease using Greyball highlighted the lengths the company went to skirt regulations and the innovative, albeit controversial, tactics employed in its rapid expansion.
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