Phia Accused of Cookie Stuffing, Suspended From Impact.com — SkimNews
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- Phia was accused of 'cookie stuffing' in a Bloomberg investigation: if a user shopped at a retailer on their own or through another affiliate like Wirecutter, Phia would open a background tab and override the original referral code during checkout to claim the commission
- Impact.com suspended Phia from its affiliate and influencer platform after the report raised concerns about the practice
- Phia is a browser extension co-founded by Phoebe Gates and Sophia Kianni in 2025 that works like 'Google Flights, but for shopping,' helping users find the lowest prices and discount codes
- Phia has raised more than $40 million from investors including Khloé Kardashian and Hailey Bieber
- Honey, the coupon tool owned by PayPal, faces an ongoing class action lawsuit over similar cookie-stuffing allegations
- Phia told Bloomberg it made 'all necessary changes' to fix the issue, and Bloomberg confirmed the fix — though it's unclear if the resolution satisfies retailers and affiliate partners
Why it matters: Phia's suspension from a leading affiliate platform threatens the commission-based revenue model that underwrites its $40 million in funding from celebrity backers. The parallel to PayPal-owned Honey's ongoing class action over identical practices shows cookie-stuffing allegations carry not just platform bans but potential legal liability — and Phia's no-comment to TechCrunch suggests it isn't ready to publicly defend the conduct beyond its initial Bloomberg response.
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