Uber Flip-Flops On Anti-Regulation App, To Ban Greyball

It seems Travis Kalanack’s company has been pretty busy in trying to get around US laws for years. After trying to ram its self-driving cab test through the California DMV a while back and failing miserably, it has had to concede on a cheat tool that discriminates against regulators. The tool is an app called Greyball and it has been how the company managed to dodge regulations in certain cities for years.

Used for tagging regulators who might want to inspect Uber vehicles, Greyball is basically a way for the cab-hailing firm to avoid getting slapped with charges for illegally operating its vehicles, BBC reports. Any company that wants to establish a cab service in any city would first need to get a license, permit, or any kind of proof of authorization. Uber didn’t always have the patience to wait for these things before hitting the roads.

Several days ago, Uber defended the use of the app. As with the California DMV permit, however, it would seem that the company did another about-take. So now, Joe Sullivan, the chief security officer at Uber is promising to stop using the app.

"We are expressly prohibiting its use to target action by local regulators going forward," Sullivan said.

What’s most notable about this development is the fact that Uber has been denying that Greyball was singling out city officials in order to deny them cab services, USA Today reports. Naturally, regulators became concerned once they found out that Uber was using what basically amounts to a cheat tool in order to prevent government employees from doing their jobs.

The Greyball revelation is yet another problem that Uber has to deal with during a time of increasing challenges. Until recently, the cab-hailing firm had enjoyed a spectacular rise in the market. With these obstacles coming together, Uber might finally hit a wall.