A since-deleted viral TikTok video reportedly claimed that a New Zealand McDonald’s could hear “everything you’re saying even when our mics are off.”
TikToker @charlton.a posted and deleted the viral TikTok video, viewed more than 274,000 times before being taken down. According to the New Zealand Herald, the worker claimed he could hear “everything” inside customers’ cars. Additionally, he claimed that photos were also taken of people in the drive-thru queue.
“We can hear everything you’re saying even when our mics are off,” he said in the caption, per New Zealand Herald. “Our cameras take mugshot photos of you, so we know which order is yours.”
Per New Zealand Herald, the TikToker added in the comments section that McDonald’s staff could hear “quite a bit” and could “definitely hear all the passengers in the car.”
His claims match what a McDonald’s employee in England, @user72664929774, alleged in a previous viral TikTok.
“The fact people don’t know we can hear your convos even when we aren’t speaking to you taking your order,” @user72664929774 explained in the overlay text. “And we have a camera at the speaker that takes a picture of you, so we know whos order is whos.”
In her video, the comments section was loaded with questions regarding McDonald’s. For example, the top comment asked: “How can you hear our convos when you don’t hardly hear the order?”
Another unsurprised viewer questioned those who were shocked by the apparent revelation: “But seriously…how do y’all not notice the camera on the speaker? It’s super obvious. And I always assumed they could hear me the whole time at the speaker. Now I know for sure,” they wrote.
Unlike @charlton.a, however, @user72664929774 seems to be thriving with all the viral attention and says she even maintained her job after her video went viral.
The Daily Dot has reached out to McDonald’s and @user72664929774 for comment.
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