To what extent is Disney World tracking you?
MagicBand+
MagicBand and MagicBand+ wristbands do a lot of nifty things at Disney World! They unlock your hotel room, work as a ticket to get you into the parks, let you scan in for Lightning Lanes, and even let you charge snacks to your room with a quick tap. But as with any tech that makes life easier, there’s always one unsettling question lurking…Is Disney tracking me with this thing?
The answer? It’s complicated. Disney tracks you, but not in a way that takes note of your every step.
MagicBand+
According to Disney, “MagicBand+ devices are not GPS-based and do not enable collection of continuous location signals. However, we may be able to detect the location of Guests who choose to use or wear MagicBand or MagicBand+ products while visiting the Walt Disney World Resort and certain other locations.”
MagicBands!
Your MagicBands do not contain a GPS, and Disney’s not using a satellite to follow you around the property. But you are being tracked, nevertheless.
When you scan your MagicBand to enter a park, tap into a Lightning Lane, use your MagicBand for a fun park interaction, or link a PhotoPass picture, Disney does log that interaction. So they know where you’ve been and what you’re doing. But that tracking detail isn’t just limited to MagicBand users.
Scanner
Your MagicBands are linked to your My Disney Experience account and app. Anything you do digitally — reservations, mobile orders, Lightning Lane selections, etc. — Disney tracks. They can detect you in specific locations, just more in a checkpoint kind of way and not a “we know you’re going to the bathroom AT THIS VERY MOMENT” kind of way.
MagicBand+!
Disney says they do this for a couple of reasons. Disney uses your location to create interactions with your band, such as a lighting effect for MagicBand+ during nighttime spectaculars. But the company primarily tracks you to enhance guest experience, or so they say. This means taking your data to form trends and adjust the park experience.
MagicBands streamline everything from ride queues to photos to hotel stays. Disney can analyze this data to see crowd flow, ride demand, and even dining trends.
©Guide2WDW
Rest assured: when you aren’t using your MagicBand, there’s nothing Disney can track. So, no, they aren’t spying on you at your house.
Remember, MagicBands are totally optional, and you can definitely operate a park day successfully without them! Do you use MagicBands? How do you feel about Disney “tracking” you? Share your thoughts in the comments below and continue to follow us here at DFB for all the latest Disney World coverage!
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I used to use it when magic bands were free…I still have mine!…. but not anymore. Too expensive. I’m not a fan of Big Brother and I don’t know how to use any app etc soooooo unless I’m with someone who does know how to navigate the new wdw parks….I just don’t go. Without Fastpass, which worked well and I loved, now I’d never be able to get on a ride and while I usually snack, not do dining table reservations, wdw is really no longer viable unless you play their expensive technology game and stay glued to your phone….and I won’t. Sad but true. I used to go to wdw to relax and escape today’s chaos, spying and phones so unless someone else wants to deal with it….I won’t go to the parks but then I don’t have to worry if I’m being tracked!
I use my pass to do just about everything like opening my door, charging at disney shops, checking in at the parks. I’ve also used in on a cruise! Much easier to keep track of than a card!!!
With the amount of cameras in the park, they can track you, with or without a magicband, so ultimately, it really does not matter. To got to disney is to be surveiled.
They may be able to track you more than you think! Once I was 20 minutes late to a Hollywood Studios dining reservation and when I got there they told me they were saving my table because they could “see” I was stuck on Tower of Terror. Maybe they saw I had tapped into a LL then 10 minutes later the ride went down for awhile and they formed the conclusion? Either way it was kinda shocking!
I’m pretty sure they don’t track you…..but…the other night after returning from WDW…….I thought I saw shadow of two big round, ear shaped somethings on my bedroom wall. Probably just my imagination……
I used mine, and loved how it streamlined everything. But, I only wore it on my wrist to enter the park. The rest of the time, it was hooked on my belt loop. I did this because I have a pacemaker needed to keep it 6in. away from my device. But, I had no problem with them tracking me while in the park. I didn’t even use it to make purchases.
I still play with mine, too.
Don’t care if they know I am just getting off a particular ride, or mobile ordered lunch for an hour from now, or see that I have exited the park and am now on a bus to Disney Springs. I’m in the Disney bubble and understand that they use the data for crowd management, targeted offers and experiences, and other marketing purposes. Nothing personal; I’m just a dot in their data stream.