Preventing affiliate fraud before it drains your budget

Cookie stuffing, brand bidding, coupon leaks, self-referral — each fakes a different part of "a real referral." Learn the mechanics, then police it with server-side tracking, unique codes, and delayed payouts.

Affiliate programs pay on results, which means they attract people faking the result. Each scheme fakes a different part of a real referral — the click, the discovery, the referral, or the customer — so knowing the taxonomy is what lets you spot it in your own stats.