‘Check them!’ The hidden feature councils have placed on your bin

Some Aussies are theorising what they're really for, while others said they removed it the instant they spotted it. 

People are madly checking underneath their rubbish bins after an Aussie's video about a 'hidden feature' being placed on neighbourhood bins recently went viral online. 

TikTok user @efxr6 alerted the public to the 'sneaky' new addition in a video posted online. 

"Did you know that the council is even tracking what you throw out? They've got a chip in here and they're monitoring what you throw out," he shared along with a video showing what the chip looks like. 

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The chips are said to be found in some bins - depending on council - around Australia. Image: TikTok / @efxr6

The video received over 500K views, which prompted the Aussie to clarify further in a follow-up video. 

"A lot of councils, not all councils but a lot now, are putting these chips in under your bins so I'm not even going to say what it is because people will accuse me of fake news or making stories up but go Google... enlighten yourself," he added. 

People hit the comments section, genuinely puzzled as to what the device was for and how it would work. 

"How can a chip monitor the actual contents, especially if it is placed under the bin facing the ground? Is it a camera? If it’s not a chip, like GPS, what’s it actually doing?" someone asked. 

"People have rights to be informed about any devices that Council connecting to your bin. Also they should give detailed information how this system work," another chimed in. 

Another skeptical Aussie added: "I pulled it out of mine."

Meanwhile, others were quick to share what they knew about the new feature. 

"I work as a garbo. We use it to link it to your property. If you put anything in your bin that shouldn’t be in there and we find it (or it explodes) we can trace it back. Also it steals $1 off you everytime you open the bin," a waste collector confirmed. 

"It’s not a big deal, it’s an RFID chip which identifies what property the bin belongs to. If it’s recycling day and some numpty puts rubbish in their bin, they can review the camera footage to see what bin did it and which RFID was logged. Then they will send the resident a big fine," another person echoed. 

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What does it do? 

RFID tags - short for Radio Frequency Identification - are not anything 'new'. Residents in the UK have had these monitors on their council bins for years. And so have some Aussies - we just haven't really noticed them. 

Back in 2017, Randwick City Council in New South Wales, published a detailed explainer about how they work after residents expressed their concerns of the council 'spying' on them through the tracker. 

"A recent story by Channel 7 News would have you believe it’s some sort of spying device. The truth is a lot less sensational. As many residents would be aware, it’s been there for 10 years, it saves Council money and makes managing your rubbish more efficient," the website explains. 

"In 2008 Randwick Council was the second Council in NSW to install Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags underneath red and yellow-lidded bins. Now many councils are doing it.

"The tag is allocated to the property address where the bin lives. Each time it’s collected, Council’s garbage trucks record the bin tag number, the time of collection and the weight of the bin."

Aussies are being warned to check under the handles of their bins. Image: Supplied

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Do all Aussies have the 'secret' chip?

A spokesperson from waste management service, Veolia, confirmed with Kidspot that the tags are indeed harmless.  

"This video shows an RFID tag. The resident who made this video is right, we are seeing more of these tags being added to kerbside bins. However, it’s not a case that ‘Bin Brother’ is watching you ― there is no personal or real-time tracking data attached to these tags," they said. 

"The role of an RFID tag is simply to make picking up your kerbside bin service safer, cleaner, and more efficient. 

The RFID tag on the bin is detected by the sensors on a garbage truck, so the driver can stop in exactly the right place to pick up the right bin with its side arms. The tag also identifies the type of bin, which ensures the correct bin is emptied into the truck whether it is recycling, garden waste, or general waste. We are trying to make the service better for customers, reduce costs, make sure it gets collected, that’s all."

Kidspot reached out to some locals scattered across the suburbs of Sydney to see if they have noticed their bins now featuring this tracking chip.

While it has been confirmed in some Eastern suburbs like Randwick, it appears as though the tags are yet to appear in councils such as the Blue Mountains City Council, Canterbury Council, and even across the bridge in the Northern Beaches.

Bayside Council is currently undergoing a bin upgrade for their residents, and Kidpsot reached out to confirm if the new roll out would include these trackers. We're yet to hear back. 

Originally published as ‘Check them!’ The hidden feature councils have placed on your bin