Thousands of leaked files have revealed how Uber has partnered with top politicians and the levels it has gone to to avoid justice. The files detail the extensive help Uber has received from leaders such as Emmanuel Macron and former European Union Commissioner Neely Cruz. This is stated in the BBC message.

It also shows how the former head of a taxi company personally ordered the “hidden and block data” system to be put in place to prevent police raids on the company to gain access to information on its computers.

Uber’s files consist of more than 124,000 documents, including 83,000 emails and 1,000 other conversation files from 2013 to 2017.

The files were leaked to the Guardian newspaper and distributed to the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists and several media organizations, including the BBC Panorama program. They showed for the first time how a $ 90 million-a-year lobbying and public relations effort has brought in politicians to help the company in its campaign to destroy taxis in Europe.

While French taxi drivers once staged violent protests against Uber in the streets, Macron contacted controversial Uber chief Travis Kalanick, who told him he would change the rules in favor in the company.

Uber’s harsh way of working is already known, but the files provide, for the first time, a unique internal look at what the company has done to achieve its goals.

It shows how former EU digital commissioner Neely Kroes, a senior official in Brussels, who joined Uber before his term expired and then secretly lobbied in favor of the company, possibly violates EU ethical rules.

At the time, Uber was not only one of the fastest growing companies in the world, but also one of the most controversial, plagued by lawsuits, sexual harassment allegations and data breach scandals.

Ultimately, shareholders ’concern was enough and Travis Kalanick was forced to leave the company in 2017.

Uber said Kalanick’s successor, Dara Khosrowshahi, “has been mandated to change every aspect of Uber’s operations” and “establish the strict controls and compliance necessary to operate as a public company.”

The files also show that Uber’s relationship with one of Europe’s top officials, European Commission Vice President Neely Kroes, began earlier and became deeper than previously identified, clearly violating the rules governing the conduct of commissioners.

He said he was in talks to join Uber’s advisory board before leaving his final position in November 2014.

EU rules state that commissioners must adhere to a fixed period during which termination of the agreement is considered, followed by 18 months during which new jobs require Commission approval.

As commissioner, Cross oversaw digital policy and competition, was a key figure in big tech, and played a leading role in imposing large fines on both Microsoft and Intel.

But of all the companies he could have worked for after leaving his position on the commission, the choice of Uber is particularly controversial.

In the home country, the Netherlands, the public transport service Uberpop has also caused legal and political problems.

Two Uber drivers were arrested in October 2014, and in December a judge in The Hague banned UberPop and threatened fines of up to 100,000 euros. In March 2015, Dutch police raided an Uber office in Amsterdam.

Uber’s files are a leak of 124,000 files, including emails and texts showing conversations and meetings between Uber executives and government officials as the taxi tech company seeks to expand business its. The files were leaked to the Guardian newspaper, which shared them with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists in Washington DC and with its media partners in 29 countries, including PC Panorama.