The rape and murder of a passenger by a Didi carpool driver on August 24th continues to make headlines across China. It has revealed an urgent need for greater supervision over the industry and the Chinese government has already suspended the service. In its three years of operations there have been a few troubling incidents among the billions of trips made. This calls into question: should carpooling remain a respectable business?

“People are normally cautious when carpooling with a stranger which does not involve money, because they understand the risks. But with Didi the platform, payments are involved, and it dilutes our normal degree of wariness,” said Professor Wu Jun at the Institute of Law, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

Carpooling with a stranger, by nature, requires people to be vigilant. You are aware that you will be in a small, enclosed space with a stranger. However, when a platform like Didi decides to operate it as a business, regardless of the profit margin, it instinctively prompts the passenger to let their guard down. Now, when a passenger chooses the carpooling service, he or she has a certain level of trust in the Didi the platform, which in turn, may be mistakenly transferred onto the carpool driver.

A further complicated situation is the social element to Didi's carpooling service. Passengers see it more as a financial transaction, seeking lower prices. While other drivers may do it to make friends, invading the passenger's private space.

“We used to enjoy a more enclosed, larger private space. Now the internet is compressing it and forcing it to open to more people. It may be convenient, but our traditional needs for safety and privacy are still there.”

Companies have a responsibility to safeguard passengers' safety. Perhaps Didi is just the latest example where technology has grown beyond society's expectations. But if we're ready to enjoy all technology's positive sides, are we taking the right preventative measures -- or at best limit -- the negatives?