Shopping data
How shopping and loyalty data become a digital profile
Retailer notices describe linking purchases, rewards accounts and online activity. Read what each company discloses before assuming one opt-out covers every use.
Sources checked .
A rewards identifier can connect purchases to a household
Kroger's notice dated 09-09-2026 says entering a rewards number or Alternate ID connects purchase information with a person or household. It describes purchase history, account identifiers, online activity and inferred preferences among its data categories. These are the company's disclosures, not an independent audit of a shopper's record. Kroger: current privacy notice
Store and online activity can be combined
Target's policy says it may link or merge interactions across stores, its website, app, ads and emails. Its listed categories include purchases, device identifiers, browsing activity and inferences. A store transaction and a digital advertising profile are not necessarily isolated systems. Target: consumer privacy policy
Research into pricing has a narrower evidence boundary
The FTC's January 2025 announcement described initial staff findings about intermediaries using consumer information in pricing, promotions and product ranking. It said the public examples were hypothetical to protect confidential business information. FTC: initial pricing-study announcement
The accompanying staff document says the work was preliminary, not exhaustive and not an assessment of illegal conduct. It includes both generalized and more individualized tools. This research does not establish that Kroger, Target or any particular store changes an individual shopper's price using such a tool. FTC staff: study scope and limitations
Different choices address different uses
Kroger's public preference page separates marketing and communications, including purchase-based advertising, from other privacy-right requests. A communication choice and a broader data-right request are different routes. Kroger: marketing and privacy choices
Questions and answers
Does a rewards number necessarily identify only one shopper?
Kroger describes associating purchases with a person or household. The notice does not establish who made every transaction in a shared household account. Kroger: current privacy notice
Does the FTC study prove a named store used illegal pricing?
The staff document expressly says it does not assess whether anyone engaged in illegal conduct. Its initial findings should not be turned into that accusation. FTC staff: study scope and limitations
Sources and scope
Current retailer notices and preference instructions checked 10-23-2026. Company disclosures are attributed; January 2025 FTC research remains dated, preliminary and separate from any named retailer's current conduct.
- FTC initial surveillance-pricing research announcement, January 2025. Checked 10-23-2026.
- Surveillance Pricing 6(b) Study research summaries, January 2025. Checked 10-23-2026.
- Marketing & Advertising Preferences. Checked 10-23-2026.
- Kroger Family of Companies Privacy Notice, updated 09-09-2026. Checked 10-23-2026.
- Target Privacy Policy. Checked 10-23-2026.