Amazon has launched a new program to gain information about users’ purchasing activity beyond on its own website, a post from the eCommerce giant states, through monetary incentives.
Named the Amazon Shopper Panel, it will pay users in exchange for the data and answering some short surveys.
According to the company’s website, users can upload pictures of 10 paper receipts per month through the Amazon Shopper Panel app or by emailing them to receipts@panel.amazon.com.
Participants will reportedly earn as much as $10 per month if they share data on receipts for purchases not made on Amazon. The money can go toward an Amazon balance or a charitable donation.
The goal behind the program is to “help brands offer better products and make ads more relevant on Amazon,” the company writes.
That data will be used anonymously, the company says.
“Participation in the Amazon Shopper Panel is voluntary and panelists can stop using the app, sharing receipts, or answering survey questions at any time. Amazon only receives information that panelists explicitly choose to share via the Shopper Panel, such as the information extracted from any uploaded receipts (including product or retailer names) or survey responses.”
The company says it deletes any sensitive information such as prescriptions from drug store receipts and allows panelists to delete their own information whenever they want.
The move comes despite the recent controversy around Amazon and other big tech firms for having too much power. One of the areas of focus from regulators has been how the companies use data, and tech giants have long faced critiques that they’re invasive of privacy.
Amazon’s recent initiative to implement touchless payment methods where users would pay by waving their hand over a sensor also could face skepticism from those unwilling to provide the tech giant with biometric data as well.
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