The convenience of ride-hailing services for Filipinos may come at a price, as a disturbing revelation about the violation of passenger privacy has emerged.

In a now-deleted tweet on X (formerly Twitter), a Filipino social media user exposed a public Facebook community of ride-hailing driver-operators.

Shockingly, one taxi driver within the group shared clients’ personal information, including travel destinations, names, and even photographs.

According to Joshua Agar, another netizen on X, some ride-hailing drivers may be part of a public Facebook group named ‘GRAB FOOD/EXPRESS RIDERS GROUP,’ where they reportedly make fun of their clients.

Agar shared a screenshot of the group, hinting that it might be the same community he referenced in his tweet.

Disturbed by this discovery, users began checking the public group, confirming the taxi driver’s post under investigation.

The driver shared a photo of his clients, accompanied by a caption revealing transaction information.

The driver warned fellow operators to be cautious of the unaware client, expressing dissatisfaction with the fare.

Outraged users expressed their concerns, with one user commenting that similar groups exist for other ride-sharing operators, including Lalamove, Shopee, and Foodpanda.

“Lalamove, shoppee, foodpanda and grab. Lahat sila meron ganitong group sa fb where they talk, and make fun of their customers. Ang lala,” an X user commented.

Some even shared screenshots of riders violating privacy by posting passengers’ faces without consent.

In response to the outcry, Grab Philippines took swift action.

The company assured Joshua, the original poster, of their commitment to consumer privacy.

In a public comment, Grab Philippines stated, “Our driver guidelines clearly state the expected decorum around passenger handling, which includes our zero tolerance for data and information sharing. We assure you that we are thoroughly investigating this matter. Any required sanctions will be swiftly implemented as part of our commitment to data security and passenger safety.”

While some drivers condemned the behavior, stating that they were taught about data privacy during their seminars, others expressed concern over the potential criminality of the privacy violation.

“Bro I stumbled upon a group page for move it riders (it was public) tapos they refer their other clients as “balyena”. One post got a lot of reacts, OP said “daming balyena today” or smth like that,” another X user commented. 

Users debated the grounds for a criminal complaint, citing the breach of privacy, which is strictly prohibited by ride-sharing operators in the country.

The service company provider associated with the group in question responded to the original poster, acknowledging that such behavior goes against their guidelines.

They committed to conducting a thorough investigation and holding the taxi driver accountable if proven to be registered under their company.

The incident raises questions about the responsibility of ride-sharing platforms in ensuring the protection of passenger privacy and the need for strict enforcement of guidelines for driver conduct.