NYC Taxi Cabin Camera App: Hawk Dashcam for Rideshare Drivers
Hawk by MRVL is a dashcam app that turns your iPhone or Android phone into a court-ready cabin camera recorder for taxi and rideshare drivers, with evidence-grade integrity hashes and one-tap dispute export.
What Hawk Does for Taxi and Rideshare Drivers
Hawk is not a traditional hardware dashcam; it's a phone app that replaces the need for one. Mount your phone on your taxi or rideshare vehicle dashboard and it records continuously, capturing both the road and your cabin. Every clip gets a SHA-256 integrity hash, proving no one has tampered with the video after recording. This matters in NYC where insurance claims, passenger disputes, and ride disagreements happen daily. Rideshare Pro tier specifically adds cabin camera mode, shift tracking for multi-trip sessions, and a passenger recording notice to comply with local consent requirements.
Cabin Camera and Shift Mode for Multi-Trip Recording
Rideshare Pro users get dedicated cabin camera, which keeps recording interior footage separately from road footage. Shift mode lets you run continuous recording across multiple trips without restarting, automatically segmenting each journey. When a dispute happens, one tap exports your evidence as a ZIP file with SHA-256 manifest, ready to send to your insurance company, the NYPD, or a small-claims court. GPS overlay shows speed and timestamp on every frame, giving courts and insurers full context of where and when events occurred.
Evidence Locker and Court-Ready Export
All recorded clips go into an Evidence Locker protected by biometric lock (fingerprint or face unlock). This fail-closed design means if your phone is stolen or lost, cabin footage stays encrypted. Pro tier clips sync to your own iCloud account, giving you a secure backup independent of the app. When you need to file a dispute or police report, Hawk packages everything: video, GPS data, timestamps, and an integrity manifest. iOS users can submit directly to NDSP (New York police report integration). Android users export the ZIP and submit manually. As of January 2026, this evidence-export workflow is used by rideshare drivers across the US and UK.
Pricing: Free to Start, Rideshare Pro for Full Features
Hawk free tier lets you record up to 10 clips per month with 7-day retention, no subscription. Local Pro costs £3.99/month, £39.99/year, or £49.99 lifetime and adds unlimited clips, iCloud sync, and Siri voice commands. Rideshare Pro, designed specifically for taxi and Uber/Lyft drivers, costs £8.99/month or £69.99/year and adds cabin camera, shift mode, passenger notice, and all Local Pro features. No subscription required to start recording; paid tiers unlock evidence export and multi-trip tracking.
Why Phone-Based Over Hardware Dashcams
A phone dashcam beats buying a £200 to £500 dedicated device: no extra hardware to install, no monthly fees, instant evidence export to the cloud, and biometric-locked footage. Your phone already has GPS, a good camera, and cloud sync built in. Hawk just weaponises those tools for rideshare drivers. If you already carry an iPhone or Android for navigation and trip management, mounting it as your cabin recorder costs nothing except the optional Rideshare Pro subscription. When you upgrade your phone, Rideshare Pro clips sync from iCloud to your new device automatically.
Getting Started with Hawk as a NYC Rideshare Driver
Download Hawk free from the App Store or Google Play. Open the app, grant camera and location permissions (location is optional and gated by a profile setting). Mount your phone on your dashboard using any phone holder. Enable cabin camera if you subscribe to Rideshare Pro. Start a shift in shift mode and let it record your entire working day. When a dispute or incident occurs, open Evidence Locker, tap the relevant clip, and export to ZIP. Send the export to your insurance company or the NYPD. Biometric lock keeps footage secure if your phone is ever accessed by someone else.
Start recording your rides as evidence today.
Frequently asked questions
Does Hawk record inside and outside the taxi cabin at the same time?
Rideshare Pro records both simultaneously: road ahead on the main camera and cabin interior on the secondary. Free and Local Pro tiers record single-view only. All clips carry SHA-256 integrity hashes.
Is cabin camera footage legal in New York City?
Yes, if you disclose to passengers. Hawk includes a passenger recording notice template compliant with New York consent law. Rideshare Pro reminds you to display this before each trip.
Can I export evidence and submit it to NYPD or my insurance?
Yes. Hawk exports a ZIP package containing video, GPS data, timestamps, and integrity manifest. iOS users can submit directly via NDSP integration; Android users export and submit manually to your insurance or police.
What happens if my phone is stolen?
Evidence Locker uses biometric lock (fail-closed); stolen footage cannot be accessed without your fingerprint or face. Rideshare Pro clips also sync to your iCloud, so you have a secure backup.
Do I need a subscription to start recording?
No. Hawk free tier records 10 clips monthly with 7-day retention. Rideshare Pro (£8.99/mo or £69.99/yr) unlocks cabin camera, shift mode, unlimited clips, and one-tap dispute export.
What is shift mode and why do rideshare drivers need it?
Shift mode runs continuous recording across multiple trips in one session, automatically segmenting each journey. Instead of manually stopping and starting between passengers, one shift captures your entire working day as separate trip files.