Man Sues Uber For $45 Million Because He Cheated On His Wife
I’m not sure if this should be filed under news of the weird or news of the stupid. I’ve heard of some pretty bizarre ways for marriages to fall apart, but this one definitely takes the cake for getting caught. Apparently, a man is suing Uber for $45 million because his use of their app lead to his divorce.
According to the article, he used his wife’s phone to login to the Uber app at some point:
The man said he used the app just once from his wife’s phone, but every time after that, notifications relating to his rides would go to her — even though he’d logged out, BBC reports. The notifications reportedly tipped her off to his philandering ways and led to their divorce. The man’s lawyer said he was a “victim of a bug in an application,” BBC reports.
The Final Two Pennies
I really want to laugh at the situation. This guy cheats on his wife, gets caught in a truly stupid fashion, and then sues Uber. I guess he missed the part where he was the one actually in the wrong.
From a legal perspective, I wonder how much, if any liability Uber actually has here. I’m not an expert on the French legal system, nor am I a lawyer. If he’s right, the app didn’t work as intended and his privacy was breached. Generally speaking, I think European courts are more likely to side with an individual on a privacy issue. That being said, I can’t imagine that $45 million is anywhere near a reasonable amount of damages.
Do you think Uber should be liable here?
The post Man Sues Uber For $45 Million Because He Cheated On His Wife was published first on Pizza in Motion
I think Uber is responsible for the privacy leak; and I think they have absolutely no responsibility for what his wife’s response to that privacy leak is. The man’s financial losses were not a result of the privacy leak, but were a result of his wife’s personal moral choices, though I do see hos attempted argument. What Uber owes to the man depends on the local laws. I live in a common law state, where I believe the wife owns everything that the husband owns (and vice versa) of what is earned after marriage. So in my state, I would presume that the wife already has ownership rights to that information anyway! If there are no local laws as such, then how much responsibility a company has for the privacy breach is an interesting question.
Lela, I think we’re in agreement how this would be handled in the US. Europe is more sensitive about privacy laws. I don’t think he gets millions, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see him win a judgment.