Q: A sub-affiliate inflated our conversions and we didn't notice — how did the audit catch it?

Q: A sub-affiliate inflated our conversions and we didn't notice — how did the audit catch it?

A: This is a cautionary case about cookie stuffing — when a source drops tracking cookies for users who never genuinely clicked, stealing credit for conversions that would've happened anyway. It can quietly poison your whole account.

A network ran a routine audit on one affiliate and found a sub-affiliate where:
— 88% of 'conversions' had a click-to-conversion time under 2 seconds (no human journey)
— The same sub dropped cookies on thousands of users with no matching ad impression
— Conversion rate was a suspicious 40%+ vs the program's 3% norm

The affiliate hadn't done it — a rogue sub had. But the affiliate's whole account was at risk because they're responsible for their subs.

The fix: they cut the sub, refunded the disputed amount, and added their own pre-payout audit (flagging any sub over 15% conversion or under 5-second click-to-conversion).

Result: account preserved, and their self-audit later caught a second bad sub before the network did.

Short version: you're liable for your sub-affiliates — audit them yourself for impossible conversion rates and sub-second click-to-conversion before the network does.

Still stuck? Drop your case in the comments.