ThummerRideshare and Delivery Phone Safety: A Practical Guide
For a rideshare driver or delivery rider, a phone is the job, the map and often the bank. Passengers have their own exposed moment, usually at the curb with an app open. Police reports show clear patterns, and most of the fixes are free.
What the reports show
Drivers: the "change my destination" move. New York police have reported the same pattern for years. In 2019, police reported at least three dozen incidents in which robbers claimed they needed the driver's phone to change the destination. In 2023, police tied a pair of men to 24 robberies in which the driver's pay was redirected. Between November 2024 and February 2025, police linked 22 grand larcenies to a pattern targeting Uber, Lyft and Revel drivers. In at least 10 of those cases, transactions on the phones totaled more than $36,000. Chicago saw a similar series in 2024, where one passenger asked to use the driver's phone to make a call, and a gun was displayed in two incidents. Here's how thieves turn a stolen phone into money.
Mounted phones. A mount keeps your eyes up, and Uber notes that some drivers use one to see the phone easily. It also keeps the phone within reach. In a 2024 New York pattern, one phone was taken from an attachment on a vent. In 2021, a São Paulo police chief said Waze users in cars with Android phones were thieves' main focus. No statistics show how often mounts are involved, so treat this as a known risk, not a measured one.
Delivery riders. In Bengaluru, India, police in 2023 arrested three men accused of following delivery riders on slow-moving electric scooters at night and snatching the phones they held; police recovered 25 phones. In Limassol, Cyprus, a food delivery rider told police in December 2025 that attackers with covered faces pushed him off his motorcycle and took his phone. DoorDash warns Dashers that a phone sitting on a car seat or bike handlebar is "an easy target."
Passengers. In Minneapolis in 2022, police said a theft ring targeted most victims as they left bars while waiting for a ride. Boston police said in 2025 that thieves took phones during or just after rideshare trips, sometimes by offering unsolicited rides. In Chicago, police logged at least 13 robberies between January and April 2025 by people posing as rideshare drivers outside bars. Being in the car isn't always safer: in Kuala Lumpur in August 2025, a motorcyclist reached into a car stopped at a traffic light and took a passenger's phone.
If you're a passenger
- Wait inside. Uber advises you to wait inside until the app shows your driver has arrived. AAA says to book and wait for your ride in a safe place, likely indoors and in a populated area.
- If you must wait outside, step back from the road. In London's "Look Up, Look Out" campaign, the Metropolitan Police advise you to stand close to a building or wall and use the hand closest to the wall.
- Check before you get in. Match the license plate, make, model and driver photo with your app. Chicago police gave the same advice on plates.
- Don't hand your phone to strangers. Boston police said to avoid it under any circumstance.
- Keep your phone away from an open window in traffic. That's our own reading of cases like the one above. Close the window or wait until you're moving.
If you're a driver
- Never let a passenger handle your phone. That's the NYPD's advice, and a New York taxi drivers' group says the same. If someone wants a new destination, ask them to change it in their own app or tell you the address.
- Keep money away from the work phone. The New York Federation of Taxi Drivers recommends two phones, one for the rideshare app and one for personal banking. If a second phone isn't realistic, give banking apps their own passcode or biometric lock, and remove saved passwords.
- Think about mount placement. This is our practical suggestion, not a sourced rule: mount the phone where it's hardest to reach from the back seat or an open window, and keep windows up when stopped in traffic. Take your phone with you when you leave the car.
- Know your in-app help. Uber has an emergency button and a Safety Toolkit. Lyft lets you connect with an ADT security professional from the app. Uber also says drivers can cancel a trip if they ever feel unsafe.
- Check your payout details after any theft. In 2023, New York thieves changed the bank account linked to drivers' pay. Contact the platform as soon as you can reach it from another device.
If you're a delivery rider
- Keep the phone out of sight when you're not using it. That's DoorDash's advice, and it applies at every pickup.
- Be most careful when you stop to check the next order. Alexandria, Virginia, police advise avoiding phone use while walking or waiting. If you must look, pull away from the road first.
- Consider a strap or tether if your work allows. After testing Android's snatch lock, one Android Authority writer concluded: "just use a wrist strap." In our view, a strap could also get you pulled, so decide what's safe on a moving bike.
- Share your location. Boston police suggest letting someone know your route or using real-time location sharing. DoorDash lets you share your live location with up to five trusted contacts during a dash.
- Carry little cash, and don't approach if something feels wrong. Boston police advise both.
Set up the phone before your next shift
On Android, go to Settings > Google > All services > Theft protection, or Settings > Security and privacy > Lost device protection > Theft protection on Samsung with One UI 7. Turn on Theft Detection Lock, Offline Device Lock and Remote Lock, and add Identity Check if your phone offers it. One caveat for drivers: Google says Theft Detection Lock may not trigger on a stable Wi-Fi or Bluetooth connection. A phone connected to the car may count, though Google doesn't address that case directly. Our guide to Android's theft protection covers each setting. On iPhone, confirm Stolen Device Protection and Find My are on.
Apps that add a hand-held layer are another option. Thummer, for example, works only while your thumb rests in an on-screen bubble, so it suits a phone in your hand, such as a passenger at the curb or a rider checking an order while stopped. It doesn't protect a phone sitting in a mount.
If it happens
Let it go. Alexandria police say do not resist, argue or chase. In a 2021 alert, Minneapolis police told rideshare drivers to keep calm, remember descriptions and plates, and call 911 immediately. Then borrow a phone and follow our first-10-minutes checklist: lock it remotely, call your carrier, freeze cards and report it to police. Report it to the platform too. Driving in New York? See our New York City guide.
The bottom line
The reports keep pointing to the same moments: a request to borrow the phone, the wait at the curb, and a phone within reach of a window. Keep your phone in your own hands, separate your money from your work phone where you can, and set up the free protections today.