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Ride-hailing company Didi Chuxing launched a new feature on Thursday that allows passengers and drivers to blacklist each other to avoid being matched, as part of Didi's latest round of security upgrades following several safety scandals.

According to a statement from Didi, both passengers and drivers will have access to the blacklisting function when they cancel an order, submit an evaluation, or make a complaint. When someone is blacklisted, Didi will not match the driver and the passenger for a period of 12 months.

The company said that during the trial period, once someone is added to the blacklist, they cannot be removed.

In the statement, Didi also vowed to upgrade its other features in order to better protect the security of its users, including a one-touch button in the app to call police and their emergency contacts.

The ride-hailing giant has rolled out a series of measures in an effort to improve passenger safety after the company was rocked by several safety scandals, including the killing of two female passengers by their drivers this year.

Editor: limenglin@nbd.com.cn