Making use of brand loyalty programs through smartphone apps? Just know there’s a tradeoff for those deals and discounts.

Case in point: one tech reporter requested a copy of his data from the McDonald’s loyalty program, as was his legal right as a California resident.

He received a 515-page document in his email. It included a years-long log detailing every purchase he made through the McDonald’s app: when, where, what he purchased, what offers the app sent him and how many loyalty points he accumulated. It even logged his history playing the company’s Monopoly sweepstakes game.

“The way [my data] was used by the company’s predictive algorithm was what I found most concerning,” he wrote. “The company predicted how often I would visit in the next six weeks (2.16 times), what I would spend on average ($13.49), and what I would spend in total ($29.15).

McDonald’s tracked that a large Diet Coke is his favorite repeat purchase. It labeled his habits as getting a “Food-Led Afternoon Snack” or an “On the Go Lunch in a Rush.” It also gave him an attrition score of zero.

“… which could mean that Ronald McDonald sees me as a lifelong customer who’s never going to stop grabbing French fries and a soda on the walk home.”

McDonald’s also allows you to delete your data, which he did.

Many of us are OK with McDonald’s keeping a record. After all, if you’re a Big Mac fan, don’t you want more deals around, well, Big Macs?

But it’s an eye-opening exercise. We’re being tracked all the time now – the music we listen to, the food we eat, where we travel and more. And often we have to take a proactive approach if we want to stop it, but it is possible.

The latest financial data shows the U.S. savings rate has dropped to an alarming low. While many households are struggling just to cover the basics, many middle and upper-middle-class families are falling into the lifestyle trap. Find out what the new rate is and what you should aim for instead. In real estate news, recent lawsuit settlements were supposed to make agent commissions more transparent and negotiable for home buyers. Instead, the law of unintended consequences has created a nightmare for consumers. If you are shopping for a home, here’s what you need to watch out for.

The Team Clark Consumer Action Center is a free helpline that can help you navigate your money questions. Call 636-492-5275. Visit clark.com/cac for more information.