Restaurants in Garfield Ridge and Chatham, Chicago lose thousands due to Uber Eats account breach

CHICAGO (WLS) — When Jackie Jackson had the opportunity to own a Fatburger restaurant, she was excited to bring the West Coast favorite to Chicago’s Chatham neighborhood.

“I saw this property during the pandemic, and I knew I wanted to bring something meaningful to the community,” Jackson said. “Everything is made fresh-to-order. We also have products for vegans. People love Fatburger.”

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She says business was booming, at first, but earlier this year, construction and street closures reduced foot traffic significantly.

“Our sales declined about 60%. At that time, we decided to introduce a third-party delivery service,” Jackson said. “We used Uber Eats as a lifeline. It ended up turning into a nightmare.”

She says it all started in February, when she realized she had not received payment from Uber Eats.

“I reached out to my Uber Eats contact person. They said I mixed up something with my bank account information,” Jackson said. “Immediately, I went to the portal, and I noticed the information on my portal was not my information. Please, don’t pay that money to them. I’m seeing a different name. I’m seeing a different bank account.”

Jackson says they told her the account had been hacked and to change her email address. She says she did, but that Uber Eats sent the money to the unknown person anyway. She says it was three deposits totaling more than $20,000.

“It’s devastating being a new business, having a street closure. I have responsibilities. I have employees. I have vendors. It put the business on life support,” Jackson said.

Patricia González owns Healthy Substance in the Garfield Ridge neighborhood. She told the I-Team that her Uber Eats account was also hacked.

González shared her story on Instagram after she says she lost nearly $20,000 in delivery sales.

“Six months has now passed with almost $20,000 in missing deposits,” González said. “I really need your help.”

Uber Eats told the I-Team they determined both businesses had fallen victim to an imposter scam outside of their platform, which led to their accounts being compromised.

The company says, “While unfortunate, it’s our policy that Uber Eats merchant partners are responsible for keeping their accounts and account information safe. We have been in contact with the merchant to explain this, as well as their responsibility to keep their account information safe…. We regularly remind our restaurant and business partners to stay vigilant and be aware of phishing emails and to never share account information.”

But both Jackson and González are not satisfied with the explanation.

González says she tried to change her bank information on the Uber Eats platform, but they still paid out the alleged hacker.

Jackson says she tried warning Uber Eats about the hack before payment was issued.

“It’s not me; it’s them. They’re not taking any type of responsibility,” Jackson said. “I feel totally violated by Uber Eats. This could actually put a person out of business.”

After the ABC7 I-Team got involved, González said, Uber Eats sent her a reimbursement of $11,000. She says she is still owed about $10,000 and hopes they will send the rest.

Meanwhile, Jackson says she has not received anything.

ABC7 asked Uber Eats why Jackson was not reimbursed at all. They said the women faced similar but different circumstances.

The company says it is continuously enhancing merchant account security by strengthening its policies, practices, and technology.