ATLANTA — Hug a stranger. Hop into the front seat of his car. And keep your cellphone out of sight.

Those are some of the tips UberX users are sharing with each other to sidestep the ban on commercial ride-share pickups at the Atlanta airport.

The rule has created a game of cat-and-mouse that some drivers and customers play to avoid getting caught. This year officers at Hartsfield-Jackson International have issued more than 125 citations to Uber drivers for operating without a commercial permit, sometimes impounding cars and leaving customers stranded at the curb.

Uber has gained popularity by enabling people to request a ride via a smartphone app for immediate pickup. They can get upscale private car service via UberBlack or lower-priced rides from people using their own cars via UberX. A rival, Lyft, also offers ride-share service. Users pay for their rides via the app.

But Hartsfield-Jackson — one of the busiest venues for pickups anywhere — says taxi or car services that pick up travelers must have a permit. Many UberBlack drivers do, but UberX and Lyft drivers typically don’t. Drop-offs are permitted by all.

The airport, owned and run by the city of Atlanta, says it wants to ensure a standard of safety for travelers through government-regulated background checks of drivers and insurance coverage minimums. Uber has been using its own standards.

The airport also collects access fees from commercial drivers to help pay for ground transportation infrastructure including hold lots, pickup areas and staffing.

The conflict between Uber drivers and airport rules makes Hartsfield-Jackson one bustling example of the unsettled legal landscape between technology-driven ride-sharing services and established regulations governing ground transportation.

“I pick up at the airport, but (my customers) are regulars and we know how to do it,” UberX driver Gary Perrin said. “If anyone asks them, they say I’m related to them. They get in the front seat … just like they’re my brother.”

Perrin hides his “U” Uber logo, which he usually shows in the window, and his phone showing the Uber app when picking up at the airport. He stops short of the other evasive move some drivers use — greeting the customer as if they were a relative or close friend.

“I’m not hugging nobody,” Perrin said. “I’m not getting no sexual harassment.”

Perrin said he stays in the car and calls as little attention to himself as possible. “The people who get caught are the ones that have the phone in the window, they pull up, they load the luggage up just like they’re a limo driver.”

Enforcement appears erratic. The airport issued 28 citations in January, 13 in February, 60 in March and 26 in April.