On social media, the scene plays out again and again: People plunging into dumpsters and finding discarded treasures like luxury purses, video games and brand new makeup kits.
In recent years, the once-shamed practice of dumpster diving has surged in popularity, with videos collectively racking up billions of views on TikTok and raising scrutiny on the waste of corporations. One viral clip by Ella Rose, who goes by @glamourddive, shows her pulling bags of perfumes and fake eyelashes from a dumpster behind an Ulta.
“There’s not much in here that’s not destroyed,” she says in the video, which has nearly 46 million views on TikTok alone.
But the increased interest has also raised a central question: Is it legal to dumpster dive?
While a decades-old Supreme Court decision indirectly permits dumpster diving on public property, the practice could lead to fines and criminal charges. That’s because many cities and local governments have ordinances in place banning or limiting the practice.
