Malaysia, 9 October 2015– MyTeksi, Southeast Asia’s largest land transport brand, today launched its latest feature – number masking – aimed at enhancing safety for its drivers and passengers in Malaysia. Number masking allows for completely anonymous calls between drivers and passengers to ensure extra security and privacy for both parties.

This is part of MyTeksi’s (known as GrabTaxi regionally) continuing drive to improve driver and passenger safety, and MyTeksi has committed a US$6 million investment to develop more features like number masking, as well as provide more training and education to drivers across the region.

This commitment to safety is recognised by women in Malaysia, with over eight out of 10 women acknowledging that taxis are safer now than before MyTeksi was available, with over seven out of 10 women feeling safer to take taxis at night.

“MyTeksi is one of the most trusted transport brands in Southeast Asia because safety is one of our highest priorities. We must always stay vigilant and believe that the key to ensuring our drivers and passengers have the best ride experience by introducing preventive measures, such as limiting the personal details available to both parties,” said Vincent Tan, Acting Head of MyTeksi.

How number masking works on MyTeksi

When a booking for a taxi or car is made via the MyTeksi app, both driver and passenger have the option to call via the app. By clicking the ‘call’ icon, they will be automatically connected via a virtual number; personal mobile numbers will no longer be displayed to ensure privacy.

Drivers and passengers can call via the same virtual number once the booking is confirmed until the ride ends or is cancelled. This also applies to advanced bookings. The calls are connected via local telecommunication carriers, ensuring a reliable connection and good call quality. Passengers can also continue to leave specific pick-up instructions to drivers via the ‘Notes to driver’ feature when making a booking with the app, if they prefer not to call.

The MyTeksi app is convenient for travellers in Southeast Asia, and can be used seamlessly to book transport across Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. The virtual number will be connected as a local call, even if passengers are using a foreign mobile number. This reduces call charges for drivers and passengers, as long as they are connected via roaming.

Please refer to Appendix for screenshots on how to use the app.

Safety a top priority for MyTeksi

MyTeksi has one of the most comprehensive safety and quality procedures in the industry. Passengers can use the ‘Share my ride’ feature to share the taxi or car licence plate number and a tracking link with family and friends, allowing their loved ones to follow their ride online and in real-time.

MyTeksi conducts background checks on all drivers to assure passengers of a reliable and safe service. Once a booking is made, driver details such as full name, profile photo and licence plate number will be visible to passengers, so that passengers can have peace of mind in knowing who will be picking them up.

The number masking feature is being progressively rolled out to users in Singapore and Malaysia from 6 October, and will be available to all MyTeksi app users in these markets by end-October 2015. To get access to number masking, users can download or update to the latest version of the MyTeksi app from Google Play or App Store.

The feature will be implemented in Indonesia, Philippines and Vietnam by November 2015.

About MyTeksi

Founded in July 2011, MyTeksi’s mission is to revolutionize the taxi industry in Southeast Asia. Since the app was launched in 2012, over 141,000 drivers have been using smartphones equipped with MyTeksi sophistication to accept bookings in Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, The Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam. MyTeksi began as a taxi app but has diversified its product offering to include GrabCar and GrabBike; available via the MyTeksi app. GrabCar is a private hire vehicle service currently available in Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines and Vietnam. GrabBike is a motorbike taxi booking service that was launched in Vietnam, Indonesia and Thailand. The MyTeksi app has been downloaded more than 7.8 million times and is the market leader in Southeast Asia.

This application can be downloaded on smartphones and tablets with:
iOS: http://bit.ly/grabtaxi-iOS
Android: http://bit.ly/grabtaxi-Android

For more information please visit: myteksi.com

Media Contacts:

Regina Robin
Email: regina.arumugam@grabtaxi.com

Evangeline Majawat
Tel: +6019 334 8582
Email: eve@grabtaxi.com