Features > Affiliate Link Checker

There are several link hiding solutions generally used on the Internet: simple redirects, link cloaking (also called link framing), link branding, covert linking and embedded cookies (also called covert cookies or cookie stuffing).

Some affiliate link hiding solutions, such as link cloaking, are potentially unsafe with some affiliate links. Using an unsafe solution can result in substantial lost commissions (generally over half of commissions are lost when this problem is present).

Using the wrong type of cloaking with your links will lose your commissions

Below is a full technical explanation of the problem.

The Two Types Of Cookies

Almost all affiliate programs use things called "cookies" to track which affiliate gets paid for a sale. These "cookies" are small amounts of data stored on each visitor's PC. They record the affiliate ID of the affiliate who referred the visitor to the site, so that the affiliate can be paid when the visitor buys the product.

This much is common knowledge, but the next part is not.

There are two types of cookies - Standard Cookies and Validated Cookies.

A Validated Cookie is a cookie where something called a Compact Privacy Policy is sent at the same time as the cookie which confirms that the cookie will not be used to "invade the privacy" of the visitor.

Internet Explorer is the only web browser which differentiates between Validated Cookies and Standard Cookies, but since Internet Explorer is by far the most commonly used Internet browser, this affects a lot of potential customers.

With Internet Explorer, all Standard (i.e. non-validated) cookies are discarded by the browser unless they come from the same website as the one shown in the Internet Explorer Address Bar.

Hence if the Address Bar shows www.mysite.com/mypage.html, any cookie from mysite.com will be accepted, but cookies from any other website will be discarded unless they are Validated Cookies.

The visitor may override this feature by setting their privacy level to "Accept All Cookies" in Internet Explorer but very few people actually do this (there is no real reason for them to do it - and most users do not even know how to do it).

The Consequences

So what does all this mean for you as an affiliate marketer?

It means that if you are using any solution which hides your affiliate link other than simple redirects, the cookie will not get created unless it is a Validated Cookie.

As a result, you will LOSE your affiliate commission.

You will not lose all your commissions, since some customers will use browsers other than Internet Explorer - or will have chosen to "Accept All Cookies". However it is likely that you will lose more than half your commissions.

Note that this problem will arise with ANY tool or script which hides affiliate links, irrespective of what assurances you may get from the person selling the tool. There is absolutely no way of avoiding the problem if the affiliate link uses Standard Cookies.

What can you do about it?

You can stick to simple redirects, but you will lose some of the advantages of using the more sophisticated link hiding solutions.

Alternatively you can use a software tool that analyses your affiliate links to determine what solutions you can safely use with each affiliate link.

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