Don't freak out over report of '3,000 sexual assaults.' Uber is incredibly safe

It’s a scary headline: “Uber Says 3,045 Sexual Assaults Were Reported in U.S. Rides Last Year.” But don’t let it leave you with the wrong impression. Yes, 3,000 might sound like a lot of assaults, and even one is too many. Yet in the grand scheme of things, ride-sharing apps such as Uber are incredibly safe.

These widespread media reports come after Uber released its 2017-2018 U.S. Safety Report on Friday. The report is 84 pages long, but media coverage has largely focused on a few eye-popping statistics — namely, that there were 3,045 reported sexual assaults and 235 reported rapes reported to Uber over a year.