You can reduce how much information a retailer and its advertising partners collect by declining optional tracking, limiting app and browser permissions, and sharing only the details checkout requires. You cannot make a purchase anonymous: a store must process some information to take payment and deliver an order, and private browsing or an ad blocker does not hide all activity.
What online stores can learn about you
Websites and apps may collect information through cookies, tracking pixels, device fingerprinting, and advertising identifiers. Some collection supports useful features such as keeping a cart or remembering preferences; other uses include analytics, personalization, and advertising. Third parties may also track activity across sites. The FTC explains these practices in its consumer guide to how websites and apps collect and use information.
That means privacy is a matter of reducing unnecessary collection and sharing, not switching on one setting that makes a transaction invisible. A retailer may still receive information needed to complete an order, and browser protections differ by browser and device.
Before checkout, limit optional tracking
Choose cookie categories deliberately
When a site presents a cookie banner or preference center, review the categories instead of accepting everything automatically. If you do not want behavioral advertising or personalization, decline those optional categories where the site offers that choice. Essential cookies may be needed for functions such as maintaining a shopping cart, so disabling every category can interfere with checkout.
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Check which details the retailer requires at checkout and whether optional profile fields can be left blank. For an unfamiliar retailer, read its privacy notice to understand how it says it uses and shares information. A padlock or HTTPS connection indicates an encrypted connection; it does not tell you whether the retailer has restrictive data-use practices.
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Adjust your browser and device settings
Review the controls available in your browser and device for cookies, tracking, location access, browsing history, and personalized ads. Names and effects vary by platform, so check the current settings on the device you use rather than assuming one browser’s controls apply everywhere.
- Clear cookies and history when useful. This can remove some locally stored information, but it does not erase data already collected by a retailer or prevent all forms of tracking.
- Consider a separate browser profile for shopping. Keeping shopping activity apart from other browsing can help compartmentalize saved cookies and history. It is not a guarantee against fingerprinting or activity linked across devices.
- Review extensions before installing them. Some ad blockers can block pixels or trackers, but they may not catch every tracking method or every ad. They also do not detect or block malware.
Use shopping apps with fewer permissions
Review an app’s account settings and the permissions granted in your device settings. Turn off access—such as location—if the app does not need it for a feature you use. Permission controls can limit what an app accesses through the device, but they do not necessarily stop the retailer from using information you provide while browsing or placing an order.
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Know what private browsing and security tools do
Private or incognito browsing may keep browsing history from being saved locally after a session ends. It does not stop a website from seeing your activity while you are using it, and it does not make a purchase anonymous. Likewise, a tracker blocker may reduce some tracking without preventing all collection or data sharing.
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Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Use unique passwords and multifactor authentication (MFA) when available to protect shopping accounts from unauthorized access. A password manager or compatible hardware security key can help with sign-in security. These steps protect account access; they do not prevent a retailer’s analytics, advertising tracking, or other data use. The FTC provides online privacy and security guidance, including information about two-factor authentication.
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What surveillance pricing reports do—and do not—show
In January 2025, the FTC announced initial findings from an ongoing study of surveillance pricing. The agency said intermediaries and retailers may use information such as location, browsing patterns, and shopping activity—including abandoned carts—to tailor prices or promotions. The announcement described examples as hypothetical; it does not establish that every retailer uses individualized pricing or that every shopper is charged more.
FTC Chair Lina M. Khan said: “Initial staff findings show that retailers frequently use people’s personal information to set targeted, tailored prices for goods and services—from a person’s location and demographics, down to their mouse movements on a webpage,” in the announcement of those initial findings. The FTC also reported that intermediaries examined in the study worked with at least 250 clients selling goods or services, including grocery and apparel retailers. That is a count of clients of the examined intermediaries, not a measure of how many retailers overall use surveillance pricing. See the FTC’s January 2025 announcement for the study’s scope and qualifications.
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Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
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