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Store loyalty cards compromise your privacy; the deals you love are down to your data. Even knowing the risks, I still use my store loyalty cards all of the time—but there are a few ways I attempt to protect my privacy.
How Store Loyalty Cards Compromise Your Privacy
Unless you receive a stamp-based loyalty card, you’re handing the store your personal data. Loyalty cards track your buying history each time you scan them, and you also give personal information like your email address, home address, and phone number.
Besides measuring how close you are to the next loyalty level, stores use this data in other ways. For example, you often receive targeted ads based on your purchase history. It’s possible toavoid targeted ads after online shopping, but you’ll need to do some more legwork.
Though not universal, some stores might sell your data to third parties. So, before signing up for a loyalty program, I read the terms and conditions. You can also contact the customer support team to see if you can opt-out.
Data breaches are an unfortunate realityof modern digital life, and loyalty cards could put you at risk of one. Besides accessing sensitive details like where you live, you risk your information being used for malicious purposes. Unlike online accounts, it’s hard to mitigate these issues by changing your password or using multi-factor authentication (MFA).
Why I Keep Using Store Loyalty Cards
Although store loyalty cards pose a significant privacy risk, I still use them for bookstores, grocery shopping, and many other purposes. Here are the main reasons why.
1. The Benefits Are Too Good to Miss Out On
I’ve always received reasonable discounts with store loyalty cards, which is nice considering that I live in quite an expensive city. This is one of the ways that Isave money on groceries by being tech-savvy.
Paying for items is often easier; some stores have “Scan and Go” features that enable me to check out without needing to stand in a queue. Moreover, I sometimes receive cashback rewards.
In addition to discounts, I enjoy accessing store loyalty cards' exclusive offers and rewards. For example, I’ve received “buy one get one free” offers in the past and much more.
2. Store Loyalty Cards Are Convenient
Another reason why I still use store loyalty cards is because they’re convenient. For example, I only need to scan the barcode when buying items to apply the discount. The same is true when I want to accumulate loyalty points.
Store cards have become even more convenient since I can often store them in my phone’s wallet app. Gone are the days of awkwardly looking in my bag or having to get out my keys for the cashier to scan my loyalty card.
3. I Like Having Personalized Experiences
Retargeted ads aren’t a huge problem for me, and I’d much rather see them than something irrelevant. I’m sure the advertiser would rather spend their money more wisely, too.
Beyond ads, though, loyalty cards offer a personalized shopping experience. The store already knows what I like and might be interested in, making it easy to find what I’m looking for.
When grocery shopping online, I can sometimes add items I buy often to the shopping basket—without needing to search for them.
How to Balance Store Loyalty Cards and Privacy
If you still wish to use store loyalty cards, you don’t need to completely compromise your privacy. There are ways you can balance the benefits with data protection in mind.
1. Do a Risk/Benefit Analysis
Everything in life has risks, and you need to decide whether you’re willing to accept the drawbacks of store loyalty cards. Look at the privacy policies for each program you’re a member of and ask if you’re happy to make the required tradeoffs.
There isn’t a right or wrong answer here. It depends entirely on your tolerance to risk.
2. Look for Stores That Just Give You the Card
Some places give you a stamp card you can replace when it’s full. These cards are mainly found at coffee shops and similar places. Rather than providing personal information, you just need to bring the card with you.
Many stores are transitioning to digital loyalty programs, so you might struggle to find traditional sticker-based cards. Nonetheless, I recommend asking; the worst that can happen is that they say no.
You can also pay for loyalty cards to get a discount. For example, my barber shop lets you buy multiple haircuts upfront and save compared to paying each time.
3. Use a Different Payment Method From Your Main Account
If you don’t want others to know your payment information, consider using alternatives to your main bank account. For example, I sometimes link my Revolut account. I only have money in this account when making a specific purchase.
You can also use digital wallets if you want more anonymity. These are some of thesafest online payment methods.
4. Consider Giving Alternative Addresses
You can always set up an alternative email address if you don’t want to link your main one to a store loyalty program. To take things further, consider usinga security-oriented email service provider like Proton Mail.
Depending on the service you use, you might already be able tocreate extra addresses for privacy.
Consider adding an alternative home address, too, but make sure this isn’t someone else’s address. It wouldn’t be fair for them to receive your mail! Check the terms and conditions before doing this to ensure that you aren’t violating any rules.
5. Avoid Using Physical Loyalty Cards if Possible
Physical loyalty cards are annoying but might also present a bigger privacy threat. If you lose one, someone else could potentially access your information. I sometimes use these, but I prefer not to if possible.
Many stores have apps from which you can access your loyalty cards. In some cases, you can also keep them in your wallet. Both of these are more secure than physical cards. Even if you lose your phone, someone must get past your other authentication methods.
