Uber hires two privacy chiefs in wake of mass breach

Uber is attempting to beef up its its data protection credentials following November’s mass data breach which affected over 64 million customers and drivers by appointing two senior executives, including its first chief privacy officer.
Intel chief privacy and security counsel Ruby Zefo takes up the top role, while Simon Hania has been appointed data protection officer, joining from TomTom where he was vice-president of privacy and security.
The move follows widespread criticism of the taxi-hailing app’s data security measures after the firm admitted it had concealed a huge breach from both customers and regulators by paying $100,000 (£75,000) to hackers to delete the data.
The breach, which affected about 57 million people and 7 million drivers, includes details such as names, email addresses and mobile phone numbers.
At the time, the UK Information Commissioner’s Office warned Uber that it could be facing a massive fine.
In an internal memo, leaked to the media, Uber chief legal officer Tony West said that Zefo would fill “a critical global role responsible for the development and implementation of privacy standards, procedures, and processes” in every market Uber operates.