Phia, the procuring startup co-founded by Phoebe Gates, daughter of Microsoft co-founder Invoice Gates, has come below scrutiny after a Bloomberg investigation alleged that its browser extension was improperly claiming affiliate commissions by a follow often known as “cookie stuffing.”
The corporate has acknowledged a coding concern and says it has already fastened the issue. Nonetheless, the allegations have reignited debate over affiliate marketing online practices and the way browser extensions earn commissions from on-line purchases.
What’s Phia?
Launched in 2025 by Phoebe Gates and entrepreneur Sophia Kianni, Phia describes itself as a private procuring assistant.
The browser extension helps customers evaluate costs throughout retailers, uncover second-hand style gadgets and mechanically seek for low cost codes whereas customers browse on-line shops.
The startup has raised $43.5 million from buyers together with Notable Capital, Kleiner Perkins and Khosla Ventures, together with celeb buyers similar to Sydney Sweeney, Khloe Kardashian, Hailey Bieber and former Meta govt Sheryl Sandberg.
In keeping with Appfigures estimates cited by Bloomberg, the app has been downloaded greater than 1.2 million instances over the previous yr.
What are the allegations in opposition to Phia?
In keeping with Bloomberg, Phia’s browser extension was mechanically inserting its personal affiliate monitoring code in the course of the checkout course of—even when customers had not interacted with the extension.
Bloomberg examined the extension on greater than 50 retail web sites and located that it silently opened a background browser tab earlier than finishing purchases.
That background tab loaded Phia’s affiliate hyperlink, changing referral codes from different publishers and enabling Phia to obtain commissions for purchases it could not have influenced.
Unbiased affiliate marketing online researcher Ben Edelman and Capital One Procuring reportedly reached comparable conclusions after conducting separate exams.
What’s affiliate marketing online?
Affiliate internet marketing is a standard internet marketing mannequin through which publishers, influencers, web sites or browser extensions obtain a fee for steering customers to retailers.
Every affiliate receives a singular monitoring code.
If a consumer clicks an affiliate hyperlink and completes a purchase order, the retailer pays that affiliate a fee.
The system is designed to reward companies that genuinely affect buying choices.
What’s ‘cookie stuffing’?
Cookie stuffing refers back to the follow of putting an affiliate monitoring cookie on a consumer’s browser with out their data or with out a authentic click on.
If the patron later completes a purchase order, the celebration that inserted the cookie can obtain credit score—and earn a fee—despite the fact that it didn’t truly drive the sale.
In keeping with affiliate marketing online specialists, this follow violates the insurance policies of many affiliate networks and retailers.
Ben Edelman instructed Bloomberg: “Probably the most basic requirement in affiliate marketing online is that fee is simply paid if a consumer clicks.”
He added: “The principles do not permit pretend clicks, simulated clicks, imaginary clicks or hypothetical clicks. Solely an actual click on will do.”
How did Bloomberg check the extension?
Bloomberg reported testing the Phia browser extension over the course of per week throughout greater than 50 retail web sites.
In keeping with the investigation, every time customers reached the checkout stage, the extension mechanically opened a hidden background tab that briefly loaded Phia’s affiliate hyperlink earlier than closing.
Bloomberg noticed comparable habits throughout a number of affiliate networks, together with:
The publication additionally discovered the extension changing referral hyperlinks on main retailers together with Walmart, Nike and Zara.
In a single instance, Bloomberg clicked a Nordstrom procuring hyperlink printed by Wirecutter.
Earlier than checkout, Phia allegedly changed Wirecutter’s affiliate monitoring code with its personal.
Why are rivals involved?
Capital One Procuring, a competing browser extension, warned retailers that Phia was producing “pretend clicks” and interesting in cookie stuffing.
In keeping with an e mail reviewed by Bloomberg, the corporate stated: “Publishers like us are having materials income taken.”
It added: “Advertisers like you might be shedding cash to pretend clicks.”
Capital One stated it thought of it its accountability to alert retailers about doubtlessly regarding practices within the affiliate ecosystem.
How has Phia responded?
Phia acknowledged the problem after Bloomberg contacted the corporate.
A spokesperson stated the issue resulted from a current software program launch and had already been fastened.
In keeping with the corporate: “Throughout the final 24 hours, we have been made conscious that in a current launch our codebase was inflicting misattributions from a subset of customers.”
The corporate stated engineers labored in a single day to determine and resolve the problem.
Bloomberg later retested the extension and reported that the automated referral alternative had stopped.
Phia additionally maintained that it undergoes common audits by affiliate community companions and has “all the time maintained compliance.”
Have affiliate networks taken motion?
Sure.
Impression.com stated it suspended Phia’s account after detecting habits inconsistent with its insurance policies.
The corporate stated it’s reviewing affected transactions and dealing with Phia to find out what corrective motion, if any, is critical.
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