“They can see which sites you’re connecting to and when, and use that information to build a profile about your behavior,” Bennett Cyphers, a technologist for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, told Recode. Stores will know which websites you browsed while you were connected to their service, and they can install cookies on your browser to track you around the internet long after you’ve left the store. (And if you used a social media profile like Facebook to log into the service, you may have given the business everything from your full name to your employer.)įor instance, your wifi connection can give stores location information as specific as how much time you spent staring longingly at those shoes you can’t afford before giving up and heading for the clearance rack. You’re also attaching that information to a set of data the store collects from you, and you’re granting the store permission to use that data in ways you may not realize. The thing is, when you log into wifi through a business’s captive portal, you aren’t just giving the business whatever personal information you submitted at the portal page. Usually, it asks you to submit personal information, like an email address, and then to agree to terms and conditions before letting you access the internet. You usually can only access in-store wifi through a “captive portal,” which is a page that pops up when you first try to connect. But you might not be aware of what you might be giving away when you take advantage of these services: by using them, you have also opted into what’s called “active tracking.” Free wifi can be a convenient way to access the internet without using your cell phone’s data depending on your carrier and plan, you may be preserving a precious resource.Īnd mobile apps often offer users exclusive deals on a business’ products or allow them to order items before they set foot in a store. These days, many retailers offer free in-store wifi and shopping apps. What you’re really opting in to when you use free wifi and stores’ mobile apps ![]() Here’s what you should know before you download a store’s app or log on to the free wifi offered at the mall. Through your mobile device that you have on you at all times, including as you walk past or through a store, businesses can potentially see which of their products you prefer, which websites you visit, demographic information like your gender and age, your location, and much more - and they have the ability to do some of these things without asking for your consent or telling you what they’re doing it at all. How did your offline shopping habits make it into your online life? Well, it turns out those brick-and-mortar stores are getting as good at tracking you as their online rivals. Or maybe you have several emails from that store filling your inbox, urging you to buy more stuff. ![]() ![]() Stop me if you’ve heard this before: You go to a store, browse its wares, consider or even make a purchase, and then go home, only to find a bunch of ads from that very store - perhaps of the very item you bought - following you around the internet.
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