Earlier today, we received a message from a reader, who understandably requested anonymity, saying that he caught a Lalamove delivery rider taking photos of his residence as well as his cars. When confronted, the rider confessed that he was asked by a customer to do exactly that—no items to be delivered; just some espionage-like task.

Here is the entire message:

“Hi, VISOR. Good morning. I would like to share an incident I personally experienced. This is also for awareness and security of the public.

“I caught a Lalamove rider taking photo of my house and vehicles. I confronted the rider and asked him what he was doing. He mentioned that a person booked the location of my address and instructed him to take photos and leave.

“I asked the rider how come this is possible as the Lalamove service is only for courier and cargo. The rider showed the instructions from the sender and we even called the person. I specifically heard the person saying, ‘Di ba sabi ko sa iyo picture-an mo lang and umalis ka na?’

“If this happened to me, this is also probably done to other people. Lalamove riders are being used as accomplices for possible theft, robbery, or illegal activities.

“I won’t disclose the details/photos of the one who booked the Lalamove rider service, and I’m filing appropriate charges.”

Predictably, the post quickly went viral, with many people expressing alarm over the obvious threat that such a scheme brings. At this writing, the post has already had more than 1.7 million views. More than enough to compel the delivery company—via its PR agency—to issue a statement. Below is that statement:

Lalamove prioritizes the safety and security of all our users and partner drivers.

We strictly prohibit the use of our platform for any illegal activities, including the unauthorized sharing of personal or sensitive information.

Any violation of these policies breaches our Terms and Conditions, and will lead to permanent removal from the platform.

Also, the PR agency is requesting that we share the identity of the anonymous sender so they can “investigate further.” We commit to do so once we convince the reader to cooperate (which we believe he will).

We really hope Lalamove gets to the bottom of the matter. It has countless customers who trust it with their privacy and personal safety. It would be utterly sad to see the app/service being misused and abused by criminals.

Let us know if you’ve had a similar experience.