Alva Review-Courier -

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A former Uber security specialist accused the company of dispatching a team of spies to steal its rivals' trade secrets and using shady tactics to thwart its competition in the ride-hailing market, according an inflammatory letter unsealed Friday by a federal judge.

Those tactics allegedly included impersonating other people, illegally recording conversations and hacking into computers.

Former Uber manager Richard Jacobs, who was fired earlier this year, made the explosive claims in a 37-page letter that sought a big payoff for being forced out of the company. The letter,...