Shopping startup Phia, co-founded by Phoebe Gates and Sophia Kianni, faces allegations of “cookie stuffing,” a practice in which software manipulates affiliate tracking to receive commissions for purchases the user did not intend to route through the affiliate. Multiple outlets report that testing and investigations found Phia’s browser extension can overwrite or insert affiliate tracking information during checkout, potentially attributing sales to Phia’s affiliate system rather than the original publisher, influencer, or partner credited by the user’s intended link. Bloomberg reports that Phia has acknowledged the issue and says it has been fixed. The outlets also note that questions remain about how the behavior occurred, whether it was intentional, and what legal or financial consequences could follow for existing affiliate relationships if commissions were misattributed. Inc. additionally says affiliate-industry leaders raised concerns about Phia months before the public “cookie stuffing” findings, citing early suspicions around affiliate performance and revenue attribution. Phia’s response, as described by Bloomberg, focuses on addressing the technical problem that triggered the scrutiny.