They thought it would be a quick ride home - then it turned into a nightmare. The victims of a series of attacks by an Uber taxi driver and his accomplices this week gave harrowing details of their abduction, assault and rape.Two men - who are believed to have stalked their targets in Johannesburg's northern suburbs over the past three months - have been arrested and police are investigating whether they are linked to all five attacks.They are due to appear in the Randburg Magistrate's Court on Thursday. Police are searching for a third suspect, and are investigating how the men gained access to another Uber driver's profile, which they used to respond to requests from passengers.story_article_left1The attacks have prompted a security upgrade at the cashless taxi company. Panic buttons, dash cams and a one-time pin activation for drivers are among the latest upgrades.Susan Dey, 64, this week told how, on a freezing night in July, she was flung down an embankment after she had been kidnapped, raped and robbed by the violent gang.Dey, mother of singer Tamara Dey, had been at Montecasino to see a show with friends and had ordered an Uber to take her home, which was five minutes away.En route, two men, hidden in the boot, emerged and grabbed Dey, who was in the front seat, around the neck."They drove around for hours, drawing around R6,500 from my bank accounts," she said this week.Dey was later taken to the outskirts of the city where one of the men dragged her out of the boot and raped her."I repeated a Hindu mantra in my head and during the rape I wasn't there. When it was happening, in my mind I disappeared."After the attack, the men threw Dey down an embankment near Kempton Park. She crawled back up and flagged a passing motorist, who took her to a police station."The worst thing I had to do was tell my son I had been raped. That was worse than the rape. It was the look on his face ... he was shattered."The uncle of a young couple who were abducted outside a nightclub in Rivonia last month said they were undergoing counselling.block_quotes_start I knew exactly what would happen if I didn't get away. I pushed the man throttling me block_quotes_endThe two, who did not want to be identified, had gone to Movida nightclub in Rivonia with three other couples.They had requested an Uber at 2am. But a few minutes into the ride the men in the boot entered the cabin of the vehicle. They assaulted, tied up and pushed the couple into the boot before stealing their valuables and bank cards.The couple were taken to a house where they were held for several hours before they escaped. "They are very strong and resilient. They don't want this nasty episode to hold them back, and tough as it may be, they are trying to put this behind them," the uncle said.Tracy Hollingdrake, 50, said she was lucky to have escaped. She ordered an Uber at about 2am after a night out with friends in Fourways in August. Once she was in the front seat, a man emerged from the back seat with a piece of wire and tried to strangle her ."I knew exactly what would happen if I didn't get away. I pushed the man throttling me and I punched the driver and jumped out of the moving car," Hollingdrake said. Battered and bruised from the fall, she ran to the nearby guardhouse at her complex to seek help.full_story_image_hright1Capetonian Chris Heaton this week told how he fought off his attackers while in an Uber cab in Johannesburg two weeks ago.The 38-year-old had been out partying and was picked up from Billy the Bums at Fourways Crossing at 2.45am. He said a man got into the front seat as the cab was pulling out of the car park. They attacked him and stole his wallet and phone before driving off."The incident was pretty frightening, as I felt that my life was potentially under threat."The incident left me shaken for a few days. I was emotional and very traumatised," Heaton said.Despite his experience, he said Uber was a good service.Dey, who used to be a regular Uber patron, said she would never use it again."I'm taking each day as it comes ... some days I'm up and some days I'm down. It's a process."sub_head_start Company upgrading security as 'priority' sub_head_endUber is introducing several security features to keep drivers and passengers safe.Uber South Africa CEO Alon Lits said the company took the recent attacks on patrons seriously."This has been my main priority. We cannot imagine the horror the victims must have endured and we have offered our full support."story_article_left2Lits said the company had upgraded its security features. This included introducing a one-time pin activation for drivers when they log on to their profiles."It's like the banking system and this is to stop anyone from using another driver's profile," he said.Uber is also running pilot projects in Cape Town with dash cams, and panic buttons have been installed - on the driver's side - in cars in Johannesburg to protect the driver and passengers. "The panic button is linked to a control room and several private security companies."Recently we had a hijacking, the response was seven minutes and the driver was helped immediately. We have received a positive response to both the panic buttons and dash cams."Lits said Uber had a strict vetting process. Drivers could not have a criminal record. The company also did third-party criminal background checks."Any driver found to be linked to any security breach or crime will have their profile suspended from the app pending the finalisation of any investigation."Lits confirmed that one of the suspects in the recent attacks was a registered Uber driver."His profile was immediately suspended and all the information was handed over to the police."Uber, which launched in South Africa three years ago, has about 4,000 drivers linked to its system in Joburg, Cape Town, eThekwini, Nelson Mandela Bay and Tshwane. In February more than 500,000 Uber rides were taken across South Africa.sub_head_start Safety Tips sub_head_end• Know your driver: Verify your driver's name and car registration.• Track the trip: Passengers should make use of Uber's GPS feature, which allows them to take their trip on the map via the app.• Share your ETA: The app allows friends and family to track your estimated time of arrival or location.• Charge your phone or send your Uber details - time, location, driver details and ETA - to a friend if your phone battery is low.• Check the back seat and boot.laganparsadm@sundaytimes.co.za..