Beware Fake Uber Driver

Portland Police report that a man impersonating an Uber driver picked a woman up on the waterfront.

It's the stuff your mother's nightmares are made of. On Oct. 11, at around midnight, a man impersonating an Uber driver picked up a woman at Southeast Grand Avenue and Alder Street.

The woman had ordered a car on her app, so when a blue Toyota Rav4 pulled up in front of her, she asked if this was her Uber.

The driver, whom the woman described to Portland police as "an East Indian male in his 40s with black hair and brown eyes, wearing a brown leather jacket," indicated he was her driver, so like most of us do on a regular basis, she assumed he was and got in the car.

There were a few red flags. First, a blue Rav4. Then, when the woman tried to get in the back seat, the driver told her to come sit in front. And finally, as they drove over the Morrison Bridge, the woman got a call from her actual Uber driver.

Oh, the horror.

The woman apparently did not then pee her pants and curl up in a ball, as some of us would do, but instead told the fake driver to pull over. He did and she got out and waited for her actual driver.

Even though nothing bad happened and there have been no further reports of similar incidents, expect an email from your mom about this story sometime within the next week. Do not be surprised if she follows up with a phone call.

Also, don't forget to check the picture of the car, and its human driver, before you get into your next Uber or Lyft.

"We have many safety features in place to help a rider identify their driver before getting into a car, including the driver's first name, photo, license plate number and the driver's rating," an Uber spokesperson told the Portland police.

Don't get into cars with strangers! Unless those strangers' pictures appear on your iPhone. Then it's totally cool, no worries, 100 percent safe!

Also please make sure your Uber driver is not carrying a hammer.

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