Feds looking into Uber spyware allegations

Ride-hailing giant said to have used program to target competitor.

NEW YORK — Uber Technologies is under investigation by federal authorities in New York for its alleged use of a spyware program designed to undermine competition for its digital ride-hailing service, according to people familiar with the matter.

In another facet of mounting legal pressure on the company, federal prosecutors and FBI agents in Manhattan have been investigating a program nicknamed “Hell” at Uber that allegedly allowed the company to spy on drivers from competing service Lyft, according to the people.

The program was said to identify drivers who worked for both firms and target them with cash incentives to shift their allegiance to Uber. The program was allegedly

used 2014-16, the people said.

U.S. authorities are already investigating the company on two other fronts: another program nicknamed “Greyball,” which was allegedly used to deceive regulators about its operations; and possible violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices

Act, which bans payments of bribes to foreign officials.

The Greyball investigation is being overseen by federal prosecutors in San Francisco, while the foreign payment case is being han-

dled out of Justice Department headquarters in Washington.

Matt Kallman, a spokesman for Uber, said the company is cooperating with the investigation, and the Hell program is no longer being used. Representatives for the FBI and Acting U.S. Attorney Joon Kim in Manhattan declined to comment on the probe.

Lyft drivers filed a class-action lawsuit against Uber over the Hell program in San Francisco federal court in April. A judge granted Uber’s request to dismiss the case last month, but allowed it to be revised and refiled.

Closely held Uber has been beset by legal and regulatory scrutiny across a range of its practices, contributing to the pressure that resulted in the resignation of co-founder and CEO Travis Kalanick in June.

AP The Justice Department in New York is investigating whether Uber illegally used software to track drivers for Lyft, its main ride-hailing competitor, according to two people familiar with the probe.