Can you delete your LYFT history?
- To delete a recent Uber.
- Ride from your history.
- Go to the app’s Ride History.
- Select which ride you want to delete and tap Delete.
It has been brought to my attention by an anonymous source that Lyft keeps records of all user rides for up to 1 year from the date of the usage. This data is collected and stored on their servers, which can be accessed by requesting access through its transparency report or through law enforcement agencies with proper authorization.
What does Lyft plan to do with this data? Will they sell it to 3rd party sources like Uber did? Are there any other purposes besides storage for law enforcement reasons? Will users be notified when their data is accessed by legally authorized uses? These are all questions Lyft has yet to address.
Is it possible to deactivate/delete your account with Lyft? I don’t know, and there does not appear to be an easy way to find out. If you do happen to have information on how this can be achieved, please leave a comment below!
One thing is for certain though: Lyft will be able to track your movements if you ride with them. Whether they do that or not, we don’t know yet. However, the following excerpt from its privacy policy shows just how much information Lyft collects from their users.
“Information That We Collect From You
We collect various types of information from and about the devices (including mobile devices) you use when you access our Services, including information about your location, browsing and search activity, demographic data, contact data, content viewing history and other information . We also may receive similar information regarding your visits to third-party websites and apps (e.g., Google Android’s usage statistics). The source of this information varies depending on the permissions you have granted and how you use our Services.
Location Information
We collect information about your location based on where you are located and your mobile device settings at the time of requests made through our Services, as well as by accessing the IP address used to register for an account with us or using a service such as Google Analytics.”
From the above excerpt it is obvious that Lyft willingly collects data from its users and based on what I found in this article , that would include transaction history (which could possibly be correlated with GPS locations). There exists no way to stop/prevent Lyft from collecting such information from their app without deleting the app itself. Does that mean you should jump ship? Maybe, maybe not. It all depends on your individual needs and value system.
What to do right now:
I personally have disabled notifications for Lyft and deleted it from my phone. I’ve replaced those apps with the UBER app which has recently been made available in Columbus Ohio (thanks to our great city council). This way I can at least keep tabs on Uber’s data collection practices while still enjoying their service for getting around town when needed. For now, only time will tell what kind of strategy Lyft will take regarding its use of user information. Hopefully they steer clear of making similar mistakes as Uber did with regard to passenger tracking, but we’ll see how that plays out once real-world tests are performed against both companies.
If you are a user that has deleted their Lyft account, how did you go about it? How long after deletion was your information still visible to others? Please leave a comment with any relevant information. I hope this isn’t the end of the road for Lyft and Uber in Columbus Ohio but rather a wake-up call to both companies. We have options, don’t be afraid to use them!
Update: Several people have weighed in on Reddit and pointed out that deleting an account does not stop/prevent data tracking by Lyft as stated above. This means if you used the app in some way or another (even just downloading it once), then Lyft will retain records of this usage indefinitely unless specifically requested through a legal process. It is unknown whether Lyft tracks your usage and information even if no rides were taken or accounts were never created, but this needs to be investigated further.
I have yet to confirm whether this works, but will update accordingly as soon as I hear back from them on my own account (which does not contain much information at all). Be sure to let us know in the comments what you think about their privacy policy and how you feel about them tracking your information even after deletion. I personally have disabled notifications for Lyft and deleted it from my phone. I’ve replaced those apps with the UBER app which has recently been made available in Columbus Ohio (thanks to our great city council). This way I can at least keep tabs on Uber’s data collection practices while still enjoying their service for getting around town when needed. For now, only time will tell what kind of strategy Lyft will take regarding its use of user information. Hopefully they steer clear of making similar mistakes as Uber did with regard to passenger tracking, but we’ll see how that plays out once real-world tests are performed against both companies.Several people have weighed in.
FAQ :
If you would like to delete your Lyft account, please visit our Help Center. In the meantime, never fear because Lyft will do everything within its power to protect your information and only share it in accordance with your privacy settings.
The Driver Dashboard’s ‘Driving History’ tab lets you see past rides and passengers. Use the history to do such things as
The app allows you to view a detailed overview of your Lyft rides as far back as October 2014. … You will also receive an email when payment for the ride has been processed or within 24 hours after each ride. The app allows you to export receipts of your rides in its ‘Ride history’ tab.
Drivers are allowed to record their rides, but they aren’t permitted to share footage of the experience with other people.
If you require our assistance to do so, we aim to respond within 45 days from the date of receiving your request. We will provide any extension periods and reasoning for them in writing if needed. If we are unable to successfully assist with your request, due to an account issue such as fraud or safety concerns, then there may be little that can be done on our end.