Uber hit with nearly $1 billion fine after algorithms suspended drivers without human review

Uber faces a nearly $1 billion fine from the Dutch Data Protection Authority for allowing its automated systems to suspend European drivers without proper human review or notification. The penalty, the second-largest under the EU's General Data Protection Regulation, only behind Meta's 2023 fine, stems from the authority's finding that between 2018 and 2022, Uber's algorithms automatically blocked drivers suspected of fraud, including those flagged for taking unnecessary detours or accepting incomplete trips.

Low customer ratings could also lead to temporary or permanent deactivation. The regulator concluded that these were solely automated decisions, as no human participation was involved, which falls under Article 22 of the GDPR that protects individuals from solely automated decisions affecting their legal or personal rights. Drivers who were suspended could not accept journeys or earn money through the platform, making deactivation a clear violation of the regulation.

Uber allegedly also failed to provide adequate explanations of the automated process to affected drivers. The investigation was prompted by a 2020 complaint from La Ligue des droits de l'Homme, a human-rights organization representing over 170 drivers, and was handled by the Dutch authority due to Uber's main European base in Amsterdam.

Uber disputes some of the findings, claiming that fraud-related suspensions were brief and permanent deactivations were always supervised by humans, while only 126 drivers lost access due to low ratings in 2021. Uber describes the policies as historical and asserts that its current process includes human reviews and stronger safeguards.

This fine follows two previous penalties imposed on Uber related to the same complaint: a €10 million fine in 2023 for inadequate driver notifications and a €290 million fine in 2024 for transferring European driver data to the United States.