Detail of Uber's allegedly aggressive "shitstorm" tactics to shake up the taxi sector and claim global ride-share dominance have been leaked.
The whistleblower has now spoken out as the fallout hits international leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron.
Here's a quick look at the so-called Uber Files.
What are the big revelations?
These are some of the extraordinary lengths the ride-sharing service used to gain a foothold in nearly 30 countries, where they often pushed in without government approvals:
- A "kill switch" to cut access to its servers during raids, to thwart regulators and law enforcement
- Secretly lobbying political leaders on labour laws and other issues, including Emmanuel Macron when he was France's economy minister
- And it used tax havens, including Bermuda, to channel funds and cut its tax bill by millions of dollars, as well as trying to "deflect attention" by helping authorities collect tax from drivers
The files cover 2013 to 2017, during a time of massive expansion for the company under former chief executive Travis Kalanick.
Mr Kalanick's personal messages to staff were part of the leak, including this sent during a police raid in Amsterdam:
Such "stealth technology" to fend off government investigations was used during raids in at least six countries.
Mr Kalanick also messaged colleagues saying "Violence guarantee(s) success" as attacks were threatened against Uber drivers in France.
His spokesman, Devon Spurgeon, said the former chief executive "never suggested that Uber should take advantage of violence at the expense of driver safety".
Whistleblower Mark MacGann was Uber's chief lobbyist from 2014 to 2016 in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
He said Uber entered new markets using guerilla tactics, and when replying to a colleague about their plan for Poland, he wrote:
Their so-called "pyramid of shit", a presentation revealed in this latest cache of files, included driver lawsuits and direct litigation.
Other messages revealed their response to the government's efforts to shut down the ride-hailing service in Thailand and India.
Nairi Hourdajian, then head of Uber’s global communications, wrote to a colleague: "We’re just f***ing illegal."
How did it happen?
The 124,000 documents were leaked to UK newspaper The Guardian and then shared with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists.
The nonprofit network of investigative reporters called it an "unprecedented look into the ways Uber defied taxi laws and upended workers' rights".
What's the fallout so far?
One of the big names caught up in the files is Emmanuel Macron.
The French President is facing pressure over his reported links while he was economy minister.
Mr Macron's office told French newspaper Le Monde that in his role at the time, he frequently had contact with many companies disrupting the service industry, and that it was appropriate to facilitate the lifting of red tape.
The Guardian reported that while other members of the then-Socialist government had misgivings about Uber's push onto taxis' turf, Mr Macron exchanged text messages with Uber executives, who identified him as a key behind-the-scenes ally.
The left-wing Nupes political alliance said they will seek a parliamentary investigation into Mr Macron's role.
French politician and Nupes alliance member Alexis Corbiere tweeted:
Far-right Rassemblement National party spokesman Sebastien Chenu said Mr Macron was a "lobbyist at the service of foreign private interests, an ideologue of globalisation and deregulation".
And the European Commission has asked former EU digital chief Neelie Kroes, for more details on her time lobbying for Uber.
Ms Kroes served as European Commissioner from 2004 to 2014, first as EU antitrust chief and then as digital chief.
What did the whistleblower say?
Ex-Uber lobbyist Mark MacGann said the company's access to high-level authorities in some countries was "deeply unfair" and "anti-democratic".
He told The Guardian he did "regret being part" of it and should have "pushed harder to stop the craziness".
One of the scenes revealed by the investigation detailed his texts to Mr Macron in late 2015, as riots in France forced Uber to be partially suspended.
Within hours of Mr MacGann's messages to Mr Macron in October, the suspension was lifted, the papers claim.
It was part of several undisclosed communications with the now-President unearthed by the investigation.
And what has Uber said about it all?
The company released a statement from spokesperson Jill Hazelbaker, who said there was "no shortage of reporting" on the company's "mistakes" before 2017.
But she said it was why Dara Khosrowshahi was installed as chief executive, with 90 per cent of the company's employees joining after his appointment.
"We have not and will not make excuses for past behaviour that is clearly not in line with our present values," she said.
ABC/wires
