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<\/a><\/p>\nThe driver\u2019s account and the social media post do not independently establish that another driver manipulated Uber\u2019s system. However, federal prosecutors have documented nationwide schemes that used fraudulent rideshare accounts, modified phones and fake GPS locations to gain an advantage over legitimate drivers.<\/p>\n
Multiple devices observed at DFW<\/p>\n
During several visits to DFW Airport, The Dallas Express observed groups gathered in rideshare staging areas with numerous smartphones and tablets.<\/p>\n
Video recorded by DX shows one person with at least three visible smartphones, including devices displaying active app screens. Other footage shows drivers using multiple phones and tablets near Terminal E.<\/p>\n The presence of multiple electronic devices does not by itself prove fraud. Rideshare drivers may use separate devices for different platforms, navigation, translation, communication or entertainment.<\/p>\n One rideshare driver told DX that the number of devices appeared unusual.<\/p>\n \u201cSome of them have two devices, three devices. I don\u2019t know what\u2019s going on here,\u201d the driver said, adding that he believed only one phone should be necessary to receive rides.<\/p>\n Driver denies having work permit<\/p>\n During the confrontation shown in the opening video, one man denied having three specific forms of immigration or employment documentation.<\/p>\n \u201cAre you on a work permit?\u201d he was asked.<\/p>\n \u201cMe? No,\u201d the man replied.<\/p>\n \u201cNot on a work permit?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cA green card?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cH-1B?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n Another individual then intervened, placed an arm across the man and pulled or guided him away from the interview.<\/p>\n The exchange does not establish whether the man held another immigration status or another form of employment authorization. It also does not independently establish whether the rideshare account he was using, if any, belonged to him.<\/p>\n The absence of a visa or green card alone does not conclusively establish that a person is unlawfully present or lacks employment authorization. Federal immigration law includes several other categories through which a person may remain in the country or receive permission to work.<\/p>\n Many of the drivers DX attempted to interview spoke limited English or none at all. DX also recorded vehicles with bicycle racks obscuring license plates, while sources alleged that some drivers may lack lawful work authorization.<\/p>\n Federal cases reveal account-rental operations<\/p>\n The Justice Department has prosecuted several organized rideshare schemes in recent years involving methods similar to those alleged by drivers at DFW.<\/p>\n Federal prosecutors charged<\/a> 19 Brazilian nationals in 2021 with allegedly creating fraudulent Uber, Lyft and delivery accounts using stolen identities. Prosecutors said members rented or sold the accounts to drivers who might not otherwise qualify to work through the platforms.<\/p>\n The alleged operation used stolen driver\u2019s licenses and Social Security numbers, altered identification photographs and coordinated account rentals. Prosecutors also alleged that members used bots and GPS spoofing to manipulate rides and collect fraudulent referral payments.<\/p>\n Fourteen defendants later faced identity-theft charges<\/a> connected to the broader case.<\/p>\n Federal prosecutors secured several convictions and sentences. Thiago De Souza Prado received a 70-month federal prison sentence in 2023 after a jury convicted him of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, according<\/a> to the Justice Department.<\/p>\n In a separate case announced in August 2024, federal prosecutors charged<\/a> two men with providing hacked phones and manipulated applications to more than 800 rideshare drivers.<\/p>\n The software allegedly allowed participating drivers to falsify their GPS locations, enter airport queues while physically elsewhere, capture surge fares and view passenger destinations before accepting trips. Prosecutors alleged that participating drivers earned more than $40 million through the operation.<\/p>\n Possible queue manipulation<\/p>\n GPS spoofing involves causing an application to report a device at a false location. In an airport rideshare system, a spoofed device could potentially appear inside a designated waiting area even when the driver or vehicle remains elsewhere.<\/p>\n That could artificially occupy queue positions and allow a participant to compete for airport rides without physically following the same staging procedures as other drivers.<\/p>\n The veteran Uber driver said the activity appeared to prevent legitimate drivers from receiving trips while they waited inside the lot.<\/p>\n \u201cI was not getting more rides despite being at the top of the queue,\u201d he said. \u201cHow does it make sense? If they are getting the same message as I am, how do they stay on top?\u201d<\/p>\n Spanish-speaking drivers said ride requests sometimes failed to arrive as expected. When asked whether signal blockers could be involved, they agreed and said other drivers were taking rides from them.<\/p>\n GPS spoofing and signal jamming are different practices. Spoofing reports a false location to an application, while jamming intentionally interferes with authorized radio signals.<\/p>\n Federal law prohibits operating, marketing or selling equipment that interferes with authorized radio communications, including cellular and GPS signals, according<\/a> to the Federal Communications Commission.<\/p>\n Questions about centralized control<\/p>\n The combination of multiple devices, groups of drivers and the tipster\u2019s reported queue problems raises questions about whether one or more organizers may be managing accounts or dispatching drivers.<\/p>\n Previous federal prosecutions describe operations in which organizers obtained stolen identities, created rideshare accounts and rented those accounts to drivers. Organizers collected account fees, referral payments or portions of the rideshare earnings.<\/p>\n One California federal case involved accounts created with stolen driver\u2019s-license and Social Security information and then used, rented or sold to people who might not otherwise qualify to drive, according<\/a> to the Justice Department.<\/p>\n DX\u2019s ongoing investigation is examining who owns and controls the observed devices, whether the drivers use accounts registered in their own names, whether one person assigns rides or distributes phones, whether drivers pay account-rental fees or surrender part of their earnings, whether devices remain inside the airport queue while associated drivers or vehicles are elsewhere, and whether rideshare proceeds flow to a central organizer.<\/p>\n Vehicles with obscured plates<\/p>\n DX also observed several vehicles equipped with rear-mounted bicycle racks that partially obscured their license plates. Texas law does not automatically treat a bicycle rack installed in a normal<\/a> or customary manner as an unlawful plate obstruction.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n