Top UBER exec outs himself as UBER Files whistleblower

The man who led UBER’s controversial lobbying efforts in Europe has identified himself as the whistleblower behind the UBER Files investigation

Lobbyist Mark MacGann has come out as the whistleblower who leaked thousands of compromising documents on the US ride-hailing firm.

MacGann led Uber’s lobbying efforts in Europe, Africa and the Middle East between 2014 and 2016. 

The one-time cheerleader-in-chief for Uber in Europe, MacGann now looks set to become one of its sharpest critics.

He’s told The Guardian newspaper he wanted to speak out because he believed Uber broke the law in dozens of countries.

He also claims Uber misled people about the company’s business model.

In his wide-ranging interview, MacGann detailed the personal journey that led him to leak the data years after leaving Uber.

“I regret being part of a group of people which massaged the facts to earn the trust of drivers, of consumers and of political elites,” he said.

“I should have shown more common sense and pushed harder to stop the craziness. It is my duty to [now] speak up and help governments and parliamentarians right some fundamental wrongs. Morally, I had no choice in the matter.”

UBER Files investigation

Journalists have accused the company of having “broken the law” in its war against local taxi companies as it entered new markets.

The Guardian has shared more than 100,000 documents, dating from 2013 to 2017.

The Uber files consists of confidential company data that MacGann had access to at Uber.

But many experts are now warning that all entrepreneurs can learn lessons from Uber’s failings.

It includes company presentations, briefing notes, security reports and tens of thousands of emails and WhatsApp, iMessage and chat exchanges between the company’s most senior staff at the time.

They include Travis Kalanick, Uber’s combative co-founder and then chief executive, David Plouffe, a former Barack Obama campaign aide who became a senior vice-president at Uber, and Rachel Whetstone, a British PR executive who has also held senior roles at Google, Facebook and now Netflix.

When MacGann departed Uber in 2016, Whetstone described him as “a wonderful leader”. Plouffe called him a “talented public policy professional” and “terrific advocate for Uber”.

In response, Uber has tried to distance itself from the investigation and the practices of former management.