Investigators Uncover Sale and Rental of Uber, Lyft, DoorDash Accounts Online

Drivers for food delivery and rideshare apps including Uber, Lyft and DoorDash have used accounts bought or rented online without identification, a CBS News California Investigates report found. The practice raises questions about background checks and customer safety. One Democratic lawmaker wants tougher protections.

The probe revealed that accounts for those companies can be purchased or rented online. It started after viewers told CBS LA's Investigative Team that food or grocery deliverers did not match app profile photos.

Buying an account gives full ownership. Renting allows use for a set time.

Sergio Avedian, a veteran Uber and Lyft driver who contributes to The Rideshare Guy YouTube channel, said complaints about fake profiles have circulated for years. He found Facebook Marketplace and Instagram listings offering Uber, Lyft, DoorDash and Uber Eats accounts for rent.

Avedian said the problem goes beyond identity theft. "I can buy myself a ready-to-go account to either drive Uber, Lyft, or deliver," he said. "I'll just pay the middleman a few hundred dollars and I'm delivering or driving passengers."

He said people buy or rent accounts of fake people or stolen identities because they cannot pass platform background checks on their own. "Is the consumer safe?" Avedian asked.

CBS LA reporters messaged sellers on Facebook Marketplace posing as renters. One, writing in Spanish, offered to skirt background checks and said lacking a driver's license was no problem. Another said no license was needed, just a filter-free photo.

Rep. Debbie Dingell, a Michigan Democrat pressing rideshare firms for better safety, called the findings troubling. "I'm looking at what we can do so that we ensure people who are having background checks are the people that they say they are as background checks are being conducted," she said.

She agreed companies may need in-person verification and ID checks. "Yes, and checking IDs. It's a serious issue that's got to be addressed."

Dingell noted that even stricter checks might not stop account renting or sharing. "This is the first time that I'm aware of it, and I will be immediately asking questions," she said. "I think everybody's vulnerable."

Uber coordinated 3.6 billion rides and deliveries in the first quarter of 2026, the company said. Avedian said in-person vetting would be tough at that scale. "They should but the scale is so large that I don't think they're going to," he said. "It's impossible to vet everyone."

The California Public Utilities Commission, which regulates rideshares in the state, reported four complaints against Uber and one against Lyft over two years for drivers using stolen identities.

Uber called fraud complex, with bad actors exploiting identity theft. In 2024, California passed a law requiring delivery platforms to show customers the driver's name and photo, but it does not address account sales or rentals.

Charles Bledsoe, who lives in an RV in California's high desert and uses delivery services due to mobility problems, said one driver did not match the app profile of female Kayla and tried to force entry. "And when the driver got here and I let him in, it was not a female and there was nobody else in the car," he said.

Bledsoe displayed a firearm, and the man left. "I couldn't have physically dealt with him," Bledsoe said. "I think he'd have been able to overpower me pretty easily and when he saw the weapon, he backed off."

He reported it to DoorDash and got a refund. DoorDash called the incident deeply concerning, removed the account and offered law enforcement support.

Bledsoe now tracks mismatches and said they occur eight out of 10 times.

CBS LA tested with eight DoorDash and Uber Eats orders one Friday in March. Two DoorDash drivers did not match profiles. A Jamba Juice order went to a clean-shaven youth instead of bearded Aram. "He was much younger, but I looked deep into his eyes and it's not the same guy," a reporter said.

A Juice Crafters order showed a blonde woman in the app, but a young man arrived.

DoorDash said account sharing violates policies. It removed the identified accounts. "The buying and selling of Dasher accounts is strictly prohibited and is an attack on the trust of our community," a spokesperson said. "These listings are often outright scams."

Lyft prohibits account sharing or sales, with penalties including permanent bans. It conducts annual criminal checks, safety education and driving record reviews.

Uber bans account sharing and requires photo ID, Social Security number, background checks and Real-Time ID Check selfies.

Meta reviewed the flagged Facebook and Instagram accounts and acted against violators.