Kroger collects customer data using a phone app and loyalty program. The application records the customer’s entrance to the store and knows which department he is in. The network says it only receives information about consenting customers and stops following them as soon as they leave the store.
Members of the loyalty program also automatically agree to share their loyalty card purchases with Kroger. And details of what online shoppers do, such as browsing, searching, adding items to cart, can be captured by companies like Google, Pinterest, and Snapchat.
Kroger says it collects data “only when necessary to achieve a particular purpose.” Data may include: name, email, postal address, phone number, offline and online purchase history, location, credit, bank and other card numbers, bank accounts. In addition, information about the mobile devices of the recipients is collected.
Analysts say the “combinations” of the above data enable the identity of the buyer. Scientists from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have discovered that 90% of customers can “open” with an average of four checks.
Source: Ferra
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