Digital coupon apps offer the promise of easy, on-the-go savings. However, this convenience often comes at a hidden cost to your personal privacy. To provide you with targeted, location-based deals, many of these popular apps ask for permission to track your location at all times, even when the app is closed. This allows the company to build a detailed and continuous record of your movements. They can see where you shop, where you work, and where you live, a level of surveillance that many users are not aware of.
1. Ibotta
Ibotta is a popular cash-back app that gives you rebates on your grocery purchases. The app’s location tracking is a key part of its business model. By tracking your location, it can send you a push notification with a special offer when you are near a partner store. It also uses this data to verify your purchases and to build a detailed profile of your shopping habits, which it can then use for targeted advertising.
2. Rakuten (Formerly Ebates)
Rakuten is another major cash-back and shopping rewards app. It also uses background location tracking to power its “in-store cash back” offers. The app needs to know when you have entered a physical store to be able to link your purchase to a specific offer. This means that if you have given it the proper permissions, the app is constantly monitoring your location to see if you have entered a partner retail store.
3. RetailMeNot
RetailMeNot is a massive database of coupons and promotional codes. The app’s location-based features are a major part of its functionality. It can send you an alert with a relevant coupon when you enter a specific mall or a shopping center. For this feature to work, the app must have permission to always be tracking your location in the background.
4. Honey
Honey, which is owned by PayPal, is a popular browser extension and app that automatically finds and applies coupons at checkout. The mobile app also has features that use your location data. It can alert you to nearby deals and offers. As with the other apps, this requires you to permit it to monitor your location even when you are not actively using it.
5. Target Circle
The Target Circle loyalty program is a great way to save money, but its app can be very privacy-invasive. The app uses a combination of your phone’s GPS and the store’s own Wi-Fi and Bluetooth beacons to track your movements. It can even tell which specific aisles you are in. This allows it to send you a highly targeted, real-time offer for a product you are standing right in front of.
6. The Kroger App
Kroger’s loyalty app is another powerful tool for both savings and surveillance. The app uses your location to offer you relevant deals and to help you find the nearest store. If you permit it, it can continue to track your location in the background. This provides the company with a huge amount of data about your shopping patterns and your daily routine.
The Price of a Discount
The use of background location tracking by these coupon apps is a classic example of the modern data economy. In exchange for a discount, you are giving these companies a huge amount of your most personal information. While the deals can be tempting, consumers need to be aware of this trade-off. You should be very mindful of the permissions you grant to these apps. You must decide for yourself if the savings are worth the loss of your privacy.
How do you feel about coupon apps that track your location in the background? Do you use any of these apps? Let us know your thoughts on this privacy issue!
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