EPIC Testifies in Support of Maryland Bill That Would Ban Surveillance Pricing in Grocery Stores

EPIC Law Fellow Mayu Tobin-Miyaji testified Tuesday in support of Maryland legislation, the Protection from Predatory Pricing Act, that would prohibit food retailers from engaging in surveillance pricing. EPIC also proposed key changes to further strengthen the bill. Surveillance pricing is an expanding, invasive practice where businesses set individualized prices based on insights gathered from personal data to charge consumers as much as possible.

In her testimony to the state’s Senate Finance Committee, Tobin-Miyaji emphasized documented harms of surveillance pricing in grocery stores. For example, an investigation by Consumer Reports and Groundwork Collaborative found that Instacart was conducting secret pricing experiments, resulting in increased grocery costs of $1,200 a year for an average household.

The testimony also clarified that personalized discounts can be a form of surveillance pricing and can leave consumers worse off, despite sounding consumer-friendly. Personalized discounts effectively allow businesses to offer different prices to different consumers based on personal data, misleading consumers about how good of a deal they are getting.

EPIC’s written testimony suggests several key changes to the bill to further strengthen its protections for Maryland consumers. First, the bill’s coverage should extend beyond large food retailers to curb the harms of surveillance pricing across the economy. Second, the definition for “surveillance data” should be replaced with the definition of “personal data” that already exists in the Maryland Online Data Privacy Act of 2024. And lastly, the bill should be amended to address harms from personalized discounts, but should preserve protections for discounts that help lower prices and do not harm consumer privacy, such as student or senior discounts, membership discounts, or promotions like “buy 10 lattes, get one free.” 

EPIC supports Maryland’s attention to this emerging issue that impacts privacy and affordability for everyday people. EPIC has also written analysis on the harms of surveillance pricing, testified in support of similar bills to limit the practice, and filed an amicus brief on the issue.