Phia accused of ‘cookie stuffing,’ taking affiliate credit on purchases it didn’t earn
The shopping startup Phia, co-founded by Phoebe Gates, has been accused of 'cookie stuffing' to illegitimately claim affiliate commissions. The company has been suspended from the affiliate platform Impact.com while it works to resolve the technical issues.
Why it matters
The incident raises questions about ethics in affiliate marketing and the accountability of high-profile startups in the digital advertising ecosystem.
Phia, the shopping startup co-founded by Bill Gates’ daughter, Phoebe Gates, and Sophia Kianni, has been accused of a practice known as “cookie stuffing,” which may have helped the product receive commissions and credit for sales it did not actually generate, according to a Bloomberg investigation.
The report has sparked controversy and led to Phia’s suspension from Impact.com , a leading affiliate and influencer platform. Other startups have been sued over “cookie stuffing,” notably Honey, which is owned by PayPal and remains the subject of an ongoing class action lawsuit.
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