A Target employee claims that the company is tracking customers using their shopping baskets
For living in the “Land of the Free,” it really feels like we’re being watched a lot.
It used to be that you could expect a certain amount of privacy in your everyday life. Sure, you’d show up on a security camera if you entered Walmart—but you could at least sit in your car eating a Big Mac at 3am and no one would know.
Now, however, that’s not the case. The modern American is pretty much constantly under surveillance—the NSA probably has access to all of your embarrassing texts and emails, and if you thought you could at least drive to work without being spied on, let us introduce you to Flock cameras.
Still, there must be some things that are sacred. For example, there’s probably not a device following you while you shop, right? According to one TikToker and Target worker, there actually might be.
Is There A Tracker On Target’s Shopping Baskets?
In a video that has since gained over 3.7 million views, TikTok user and Target worker Elijah (@user60342208753) claims that there’s now a peculiar addition to Target’s shopping baskets.
“I just want to make a PSA. You are now being tracked at Target,” he starts.
He then shows a red Target shopping basket. There’s a small device on the side of the basket secured with two screws.
“These baskets, this thing? That’s a tracker,” Elijah states.
“So they’re now tracking shoppers at Target at your local Target for, supposedly, consumer habits,” he concludes.
Elijah isn’t the only employee to notice this. In a Reddit thread from March 2026, an employee asked what the device on the side of the shopping baskets was. The common consensus from users was that it was a tracker. But is that really what this device does?
Target, Tracking, And You
Needless to say, if you are in a major retailer, you are being watched and, to a certain extent, tracked from the moment you enter to the time you leave. There are enough security cameras throughout your entire shopping process to make it pretty easy to know who you are, what you’re buying, and if you are stealing.
The question remains: Are companies really keeping track of all that stuff? And will Target remember if I buy something weird?
To answer that question, one should look at the device itself. This appears to be a device produced by Acuity Brands Lighting, Inc. Its stated purpose is to track the location of something like a shopping basket.
Using this information, it would be possible for a store like Target to look at where customers tend to stop, where they pass by, and other behaviors they may engage in in-store.
Is This Really Happening?
It’s unclear if—and to what extent—this is happening. However, Target has stated that it employs customer tracking since at least 2017. That said, the methods used for its tracking may have changed over the years.
The fact that Target is tracking customers is laid out in its privacy policy. On the Target website, the company says that it tracks “Geolocation data” of customers, which can include “in-store location.”
While there may be benefits for the company in terms of understanding customer behavior, the Privacy Policy notes that there are benefits for the customer as well.
“For example, precise geo-location can be used to help you find nearby Target stores; or, in-store location through the use of your phone’s Bluetooth signal, LED light chip technologies or other technologies will permit Target to find nearby products for you, get you real-time deals, auto-sort your shopping list and more,” the policy reads.
Users Are Upset
Elijah later put the video on private. He then posted a follow-up video sharing his reason for uploading the original video.
“The main takeaway from my last video is that big companies are doing even more stuff to get more of your data. They’re just gonna sell that to maximize profits from anyone,” he shared.
@user60342208753 mote data for them ig #files #government #flock
In the comments on his follow-up, users spoke to the extent of the tracking.
“I work in Asset Protections for target. We can see much more than people think… we track credit cards, gift cards, license plates, our system has petabytes of pictures and video from every location for cases, every target works with each other to catch thieves,” stated a user. “If your in target you’ve probably been monitored by us, and target basically has an internal police department for mass guest theft, and mainly internal employee theft!”
BroBible reached out to Target via email and to the creator via TikTok direct message.