GrabTaxi and Uber will ensure privacy by blocking phone numbers

Ride-booking services, GrabTaxi and Uber will tighten privacy measures by blocking the real mobile numbers of commuters and drivers to ensure both parties do not misuse personal details. Last week, Uber implemented its number-masking technology that will 'disguise' personal numbers so Singapore Uber drivers who call from their mobile devices will not be able to see the customer's mobile number and vice versa.

Instead, they will automatically be routed through an encrypted number. Drivers and riders will then communicate through 'dummy' numbers, essentially a forwarding number, designed to block the true caller IDs of both the driver and passenger. This system, which has been rolled out in the United States and most recently in India, is meant to prevent drivers from making unsolicited contact with passengers.

GrabTaxi and its private-hire car service GrabCar began blocking the real numbers of drivers and passengers more than a month ago.