Three days after the rape and murder of a Didi passenger, China's Transport Ministry has demanded answers and better supervision. 

The August 24 incident, in which a Didi driver allegedly raped and killed a ride-sharing passenger in east China's Zhejiang Province, comes just three months after a similar murder. 

The driver, surnamed Zhong, is accused of robbery, rape and intentional homicide and has been approved of arrest by the Yueqing People's Procuratorate in Zhejiang Province. 

The cases have cast doubt on the safety of the popular Chinese ride-sharing service. 

The body of the latest victim, a 20-year-old woman, was found Saturday. The woman's friend initially reached out to Didi to no avail. The company provided the driver's information nearly three hours after the first request. 

"Didi's customer service should have responded better. We used to trust Didi. Now we really need to be careful," says Ms. Wang Yajun. 

Didi is China's largest ride-sharing company, providing services from business car hiring to taxis to car-pooling. The company enjoys a major market share in China, which is why the public is furious with Didi. 

Some say it seems like Didi knows it will be inconvenient for passengers to switch to another platform and will most likely return to the platform despite its track record. 

"Whether they have a self-supervision system or they provide police with the information on their drivers...This is a service they provide. The company needs to improve it," said Mr. Zhang Gengsheng. 

Didi said the driver altered his car's license plate on the day of the crime. 

Furthermore, a day prior to the incident, another female passenger reported the same driver to Didi for inappropriate behavior. The outsourced customer service department simply failed to follow up. 

These incidents call into question what some say are major management loopholes by Didi. And even Didi drivers recognize the problem. 

Yao Hongcai is a driver with a non-Beijing ID. If he applied now, he would not be allowed to drive for Didi, one of the safety measures Didi implemented. However, it seems like this new policy applies to newcomers only. 

"I registered with Didi three years ago and back then they still allowed non-Beijingers to register. And that's the only time they vetted me and checked my IDs."

"I've heard that some people registered with Didi using their IDs and rented cars out to drivers who did not match Didi's requirements," said Ji Gang, another Didi driver.

Wu Jun, an associate professor at the Institute of Law, Chinese Academy of Social Science, points out that the hitch service itself carries major risks. If a company wants to profit from it, they must have a top-notch supervision system. Technology often grows faster than what the society is ready for. Such new industries do provide convenience, but the public's demand for safety and privacy is still there. 

Now, with two Didi murder cases in less than four months, the government is stepping in. 

The Chinese Ministry of Transport and Ministry of Public Security have demanded that Didi immediately suspend its Hitch service and stop accepting new drivers. Tangible solutions need to be released before the first of September. And operation data of ride-sharing platforms will be accessible in real time to prevent future incidents. 

Didi did apologize in a statement for its part in the Zhejiang murder. But experts say the string of episodes points to the fundamental issue. These new industries attract attention and rise fast. But often they do not have the management abilities capable of self-supervision. It will likely take more than apologies and promises to regain customer trust.