Uber gets sued over alleged ‘Hell’ program to track Lyft drivers

Uber has another lawsuit on its hands. This time, it’s about Uber’s alleged use of a program called “Hell.” The plaintiff, Michael Gonzales, drove for Lyft during the time Uber allegedly used the software. He’s seeking $5 million in a class action lawsuit.

As the story goes, Uber allegedly tracked Lyft drivers using a secret software program internally referred to as “Hell.” It allegedly let Uber see how many Lyft drivers were available to give rides, and what their prices were. Hell could allegedly also determine if people were driving for both Uber and Lyft.

The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, alleges Uber broadly invaded the privacy of the Lyft drivers, specifically violated the California Invasion of Privacy Act and Federal Wiretap Act and engaged in unfair competition.

Uber denied the part in The Information’s original story about “privileged dispatch” and “dual-epping,” which would give preference to drivers on both Lyft and Uber. Uber did not, however, confirm or deny the existence Hell as a whole. But given the nature of the lawsuit, plaintiffs can request information during the discovery period that could prove whether or not Uber had such a program.

Uber legally has 21 days to respond to the suit. I’ve reached out to Uber for comment and will update this story if I hear back.