Phoebe Gates’ shopping app Phia responds to allegations of cookie stuffing
Phia is taking proactive steps to rectify its sales records by reversing transactions that were misattributed. In light of concerns over cookie stuffing, where tracking cookies are added without user consent, founders Phoebe Gates and Sophia Kianni have acknowledged awareness of these settings. Phia has eliminated these features and is now collaborating with brand partners to ensure a seamless…
Phia, the AI-powered shopping app founded by Bill Gates' daughter Phoebe Gates and her Stanford roommate Sophia Kianni, is facing allegations of cookie stuffing after a Bloomberg report surfaced. The app operates as a browser extension that helps shoppers find discount codes and compare prices, earning affiliate commissions from partner retailers.
However, internal messages and code indicate that Phia's automated features placed tracking cookies on users' browsers without their knowledge, allowing the company to claim commissions on sales it did not drive, a practice known as cookie stuffing.
Phia has responded to the allegations, stating that they removed any features causing misattributions over a month ago on July 7. The spokesperson for Phia told People, "We are reviewing every transaction, fully committed to issuing transaction reversals to brand partners, and hiring a head of compliance to prevent such incidents from happening again."
The statement also mentioned that Phia continues to connect users with items and offers from thousands of brand partners, adding new features like a digital closet in the future.
The accusations against Phia come after a Bloomberg report revealed that the two founders were aware of cookie stuffing practices months earlier. Internal Slack messages, familiar sources, and historical source code support this claim, showing that Phia implemented automated features to inject tracking cookies into users' checkout sessions without any user interaction. This practice is strictly prohibited by commercial network contracts and partner agreements.
Written by urgent.news from Times of India's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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