I shop online a lot. It’s convenient, I can usually find exactly what I’m looking for and, living in Tokyo, it’s sometimes the easiest way for me to get products that aren’t readily available here. I find what I want, place the order and generally don’t think much about what happens after that.

But retailers have plenty to remember. Every product I look at and every purchase I make can reveal something about how I shop and what I might spend money on next. Some of that information makes shopping easier for me, but it can also be used for advertising or become valuable to other companies.

I’m not going to stop shopping online because of that, and you probably aren’t either. But knowing what retailers can do with your data makes it a lot easier to decide how much of it you actually want to give them.

This article was made possible in part by Incogni. It was written and edited independently without partner oversight.

Once you hit the checkout button, you’re probably done thinking about the transaction. The retailer may not be. The searches you made, products you looked at and things you ultimately bought can all be useful well after your order is confirmed.

Much of this falls under first-party data, which is just information a retailer collects directly from you as you use its service. Your browsing activity, purchases and interactions with an account or loyalty program can all fall into this category.

This becomes useful for both you and the retailer when you have an account or belong to a loyalty program.

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