You’ve seen it with airfares, concert tickets, and rideshares. Prices that change by the hour, or even the minute.
You look up a flight, or a hotel, or maybe just a few things you need online. Then you come back later, and the price is higher.
But consumer watchdogs say some companies may be going a step further, using personal data like your location, browsing history, and shopping habits to help decide what price or offer you see.
The Federal Trade Commission is now studying so-called “surveillance pricing.”
Prices that change based on demand, inventory, or timing are dynamic pricing. But regulators are now looking at something more personal: whether companies are using consumer data to help shape the price or promotion you see.
The Federal Trade Commission calls it surveillance pricing, using data like your location, browsing history, shopping habits, and other personal signals to help target prices or offers. The FTC reports some tools can track everything from what you leave in an online cart to how you move your mouse on a webpage.
So how can you deal with this? First, go dark. Browse in incognito! Using private browsing modes to avoid price hikes based on repeated searches.
Next, use two browsers, one for shopping, one for buying. Sellers can’t track your activity across browsers.
Check for location-related pricing. Enter a ZIP code at a lower income level. If you see a lower price, clear the cookies from your browser and start the order again with the lower-price ZIP code.
And before you buy, clear your cookies. Websites often use them to track your browsing history and location. Resetting them may give you a fresh start.
And use tech to beat it! Apps like CamelCamelCame and Honey by PayPal track prices, alert users of price drops and provide promo codes for discounts. But the tradeoff for saving through third-party apps is giving up data about your shopping habits.