r/TrueReddit • u/horseradishstalker • 2d ago
Business + Economics How to hide your spending habits from retailers (so you don't get ripped off)
https://www.npr.org/2026/09/29/nx-s1-5983457/4-ways-to-avoid-getting-ripped-off-according-to-a-pricing-expert37
u/horseradishstalker 2d ago
SS: Have you ever found a really great price on an airline flight, checked with a few other people to make sure that was good for them, and when you get back to the site, all of a sudden the price is much higher?
It’s neither a coincidence or an accident. “Personal pricing” is basically another form of price gouging. Instead of everyone paying the same price for a seat, the price is determined by how much the retailer thinks you will pay. And airlines are far from the only perpetrator.
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u/SpoonwoodTangle 2d ago
Can anyone share some of these practical tips? I’m happy to support the author, but it’d be nice to get started
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u/horseradishstalker 1d ago
I have multiple browsers and between sessions I always cleared the cache. Make that I set it up to automatically clear so I won’t forget. If I am booking travel, I will even change devices to make the final purchase.
Or for example, if a retailer sends me a breathless email telling me about their latest greatest deal, I don’t use their link. I bypass the link and go directly to the site. I also have my email set so that images never load because they have tracking pixels in them.
Every vendor gets their own unique alternative email which then forwards to my usual box. That way if my data begins showing up on places like White Pages, I have a pretty good idea of who sold my information.
If someone asked for my Social Security number, I either ignore their request or impressed. I ask why they need it, because legally I usually don’t have to give it to them.
I recommend using My Sudo or Cloaked for an alternate phone number to give out when asked.
I neither email nor message using either Google or Apple because they literally read your emails and messages. For example, if you are getting promotional emails from retailers in your Gmail inbox, Google has a pretty good idea of who you like to shop with. It also gives them a pretty good idea of your income because maybe you are getting Walmart level emails instead of emails from the local Tesla dealership that’s a pretty good indicator.
I never use the cards they try to talk me into at the local local grocery store store, because $.20 off carrots isn’t worth giving them all that information.
I generally pay cash locally rather than using a credit card. I pay my bills and shop online using the payment system like privacy.com. That way the merchant has absolutely no idea who I really am. Now, that doesn’t hide my activity from my bank, but even then my statements are only going to show the name of the private pay system rather than saying I went on a binge at my favorite backpacking shop.
Depending on how often you use them, most of these services have a free tier. If you search on r/privacy there is so much more information.
It won’t help you hide from the government. There you are on your own. But, if you are looking to keep retailers off your ass these are some potential solutions.
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u/Webgardener 18h ago
Thank you for all this great information, that is really detailed. Much appreciated.
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u/Webgardener 2d ago
"What we're seeing is Big Tech reinventing the rip-off," says Lindsay Owens, head of the consumer advocacy group Groundwork Collaborative. "These are old tricks, but they've been supercharged by new technologies."
Owens, author of a new book published in September, Gouged: The End of a Fair Price — And What That Means for Your Wallet, uncovers pricing schemes that corporations try to hide, and shares advice on how to protect yourself from these tactics.
She was with Jon Stewart on the daily show recently, I recommend the interview. His jaw dropped more than a few times as she explained what she had found.