Speaking to New Idea Food, the shopper said she was ‘felt so creeped’ by the alert, adding that it felt like Woolworths ‘are watching me.’
Even more alarming was that the mum wasn’t logged into the app at the time - and had no idea how the app even knew she was intending to shop at Woolworths.
She explains: ‘I was doing the grocery run in Mollymook where I’m staying with family. I hopped in the car to Woolies, one I had never been to before in my life.
‘And as I approached I was shocked to see a notification pop up on my phone...Woolies knew I was on my way and offered to remind me to take my bags.
‘I was so creeped I felt like checking the backseat of the car in case there was a Woolies staffer lurking there.’
Woolworths uses geofencing on their app, which alert customers when they are near a store - up to 200 metres. And while they believe the shopping bag alert is helpful for some shoppers, anyone who doesn’t like it can opt out of receiving notifications through the ‘more’ menu on the app or through your phone’s settings.
Says a spokesperson: ‘At Woolworths, we’re always looking for ways to make shopping easier for our customers.
‘The Woolworths App offers many notifications to help customers with their shop, including the option to receive a reminder to bring their reusable bags as they approach a store.
‘To take advantage of this reminder, customers need to opt in to this specific feature.’
Woolworths believe the shopper must’ve agreed to share her location and receive notifications, the busy mum isn’t so sure.
‘I’m quite confident it was automatically accessing my location but wouldn’t swear by it, am a busy mother after all,’ she says.
‘It felt like Big Brother stuff, like Woolworths were stalking me,’ she added.
