Victoria’s Secret, the prominent underwear boutique, has once again been accused of the ability to engage devices to track customers. Although the plot was discredited in June through Snopes, USA Today, Reuters, Business Insider and other media, it still circulates on social media.
The item in question appears to be a radio frequency identification chip (RFID), a device used to tag products and alert store workers if someone is going to leave without paying. According to the FDA, RFID consists of tags and units that emit radio waves and obtain signals from each other. Passive RFID tags do not need batteries and are powered through drives.
Victoria’s Secret said the company’s bras use RFID chips, visitor tracking devices, and the company has denied any involvement in sex trafficking.
Accusations that Victoria’s Secret tracked people’s bras appear to have originated on social media.
In TikTok, a video gained nearly 3 million likes after a woman said, “Today I discovered that Victoria’s Secret was following you,” before removing a label and tape with metal colored bars that she called a “chip. “Several commentators made fun of you. The woman who posted the video. “It’s a safety sensor. Everyone knows that . . . “he wrote,” one user wrote in the comments of the Tiktok video.
However, the concept that Victoria’s Secret was temporarily following its clients has become a charge of sex trafficking. Conspiracy theorists have accused Victoria’s Secret of using trackers on bras to target other people who need to become victims of sex trafficking.
A user said on Facebook that she thought Victoria’s Secret was looking to “buy people’s souls”:
. . . Then, the user who created and manages Victoria Secret buys people’s souls and she has something to do with the sex trafficking that is happening. Did you know that if you cut your label in half, there’s a chip/tracker inside?If you don’t need to cut your label to see it, just put it in the light. Surprised (also tell me why trackers are ONLY on bras and lingerie, not on shirts, sports pants, lingerie ONLY)
– Victoria’s Secret (@VictoriasSecret) July 1, 2020
Victoria’s Secret first faced the allegations in June, when the first videos came out on social media, and Victoria’s Secret responded by airing a Business Insider and several other news sites:
Like many other retailers, this generation is helping us to offer wonderful in-store delight by making sure we have the right products for our customers. that our affiliates can satisfy the wishes of our customers.
Snopes discovered that the Victoria’s Secret visitor was fake, noting that what is called a “tracking device” is actually an RFID chip that is used to track stock within a limited radius around a store. RFID chips are widely used in other major stores and are expected to help you prevent theft; fleas cause an alarm if they pass through the exit without being eliminated or disarmed by an employee.
USA Today concluded:
We assess the claim that Victoria’s Secret is tracking its buyers as FAUX. The company uses RFID generation to track stock and is used through many retailers. The company has shown the goal of generation and there is no evidence that Victoria’s Secret uses chips to track customers. Technology is also a garment, only lingerie, as users claim.
READ READ: Nearly 14 million Americans can get interest checks for tax refund