In a viral YouTube video, MegaLag claims PayPal's Honey browser extension doesn't show users the best coupons and deals, and steals creators' affiliate revenue
www.fakespot.com [embedded post] Harry McCracken / @harrymccracken.com : It was obvious that Honey was involved in poaching of some sort, but this is a brilliantly-done video. https://9to5mac.com/2024/12/23/paypal- honey-browser-extension-controversy/ @tinydragon.art : Well hey now we know how Honey made all of their money. — Give this a watch then uninstall Honey from your browser. It's NOT finding you the best deals and it's stealing from your favorite youtubers who make commission off of product referrals. — www.youtube.com/watch?v=vc4y... Michael Tae Sweeney / @mtsw : this is wild. influencer marketing is an absolutely rotten sector of the media, to the extent that one of the largest scams in history appears to be the influencers scamming themselves by accident: www.youtube.com/watch?v=vc4y... Casey Newton / @caseynewton : I don't think so Honey! [embedded post] Adam Demasi / @kirb.me : To be honest I thought the affiliate stealing part of Honey was pretty well known. I guess not. The funny tabs that show up while it's “finding the best deal” are a dead giveaway it's stealing the affiliate sale. — A great investigation though, and MegaLag has other great scam busting videos too. … Kevin Beaumont / @GossiTheDog.cyberplace … : So this is incredibly damning re Paypal's Honey. Also, lol. Uninstall this Chrome/Edge addon. — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v= vc4yL3YTwWk Daiz / @daizz : Watched the Honey expose vid. Wild what a scam this entire thing is from top to bottom, stealing money from basically everyone involved. Can recommend seeing for yourself: www.youtube.com/watch?v=vc4y... @venerabela.vuhuni.net : I have uninstalled the Honey extension from my browser. — You should too. — I cant imagine how many times I've lost my favorite creators their cash because of this fucking extension. — www.youtube.com/watch?v=vc4y... Patrick Howell O'Neill / @patrickhowelloneill.com : First of all, this is a good investigation. But second of all, the YouTube (& podcast & entire creator) ad ecosystem is full of scammy bullshit and con artist pig slop that this is just a slice www.youtube.com/watch?v=vc4y... Taylor Lorenz / @taylorlorenz : This video on Honey is absolutely wild and worth a watch Mastodon: @jon_alper@mastodon.online : The tone and packaging are annoying as blazes but the underlying info is hilariously evil. https://www.youtube.com/... Honey, (browser plug-in for discount codes) turned out to be parasitic and misleading but the ‘victims’ were less (but still) the end users than influencers. Keith Smiley / @SmileyKeith@hachyderm.io : Finally someone figured out what sketchy thing the Honey browser extension is doing https://www.youtube.com/... If you have this installed, uninstall it ASAP. Ernie Smith / @ernie@writing.exchange : I usually find these kinds of scam busting videos to be overdramatic so I would be careful leaning too hard on this. But if Honey is undermining the creators using them for sponsorships and double dealing with online retailers, that's a problem. — https://youtu.be/... X: Mark / @markiplier : I KNEW IT!!! @cosmic_oro : @markiplier I always had a natural distrust of Honey as well. It sounded WAY too good to be true. The way they seriously over advertised themselves was also kinda weird too Coffeezilla / @coffeebreak_yt : Incredible investigative deep dive on the HONEY browser extension scam. 🔥 Watch the full thing on YT. Joseph Carlson / @joecarlsonshow : Just to summarize... PayPal's Honey is a predatory Chrome extension that sits between content creators (YouTubers, bloggers, podcasters, etc) and the affiliate websites and hijacks their commissions for referrals. And has been doing so for years. ZERO creators were made aware Sean / @forthewintcg : Markiplier was right about Honey all along [video] Quinn Nelson / @snazzylabs : On the one hand, why is this surprising? PayPal is a scummy company. On the other hand, if not last-click affiliate advantage, there's no other way for Honey to generate revenue, no? I've never worked with Honey because I just presumed this was how it worked. Andreas Xirtus / @andreasxirtus : @MegaLagOfficial ... uninstalled [image] Jelte / @j3lte : So it seems the @honey scam that was uncovered by @MegaLagOfficial is based around an Chrome Extension that DIRECTLY violates @googlechrome Web Store policies. Time to report the sh*t out of them... (or let me know who to tag at Google to get this extension taken down...) [image] @megalagofficial : Here's how @PayPal @honey has been stealing money from influencers: [video] LinkedIn: Ronnie Tokazowski : This is a really good behind-the-scenes of how PayPal's Honey is using affiliate links to steal money from online content creators. … Magnus Revang : Yesterday, a YouTuber exposed the company Honey - which is owned by PayPal - for deceitful and maybe fraudulent business practices. A 23 minute expose. … Jordan Williams : Honey scams influencers and brands. — By replacing affiliate link cookies and attribution during the sale. … Nick Tate : Genuine investigative journalism has taken a big hit since the internet opened an infinite number of channels and slashed profit margins … Glenn Vanderlinden : Here's one for your holiday watchlist that could have been another Netflix documentary. — I wish more people would actually understand affiliate networks. … Oliver Bogner : Have any idea how Honey and PayPal make money? You'll be shocked! — You need to watch this video to understand the shady side of their business model. … Forums: Hacker News : Exposing the Honey Influencer Scam [video] r/Anticonsumption : How the Honey browser extension (owned by PayPal) exploits shoppers, influencers and online stores r/Coffeezilla_gg : Exposing the Honey Influencer Scam (owned by paypal, its worse than you thought...) r/youtube : “Honey” is stealing money from content creators Msmash / Slashdot : PayPal's Honey Accused of Misleading Users, Hiding Discounts See also Mediagazer
Context & Ripple Effects
Honey's trust questions predated the investigation: Amazon had warned shoppers about the extension as a security risk after PayPal's acquisition. MegaLag's claims shift the focus from shopping convenience to whether a browser intermediary can capture value created by merchants, publishers, and creators.
The allegations became a consequential test of extension governance: Google later barred affiliate-link injection without user action or benefit, while subsequent coverage tracked a significant decline in Honey's user base.
First-order effects
- PayPal and Honey face immediate reputational pressure from users and creators, with public calls to remove the extension and heightened scrutiny of how it selects codes and handles affiliate attribution.
- Creators and affiliate partners have reason to review referral links and commission reporting, because the allegations challenge whether the credited referrer matches the party that drove the purchase.
Second-order effects
- Browser-extension platforms and affiliate networks face pressure to make attribution changes more visible and demonstrably user-beneficial; Google's later rule change shows that this became a platform-policy issue.
- Competing coupon and cashback tools may need to distinguish their revenue models from alleged cookie or link replacement practices, while merchants may reassess which intermediaries receive affiliate commissions.
Third-order effects
- If enforcement and user distrust persist, distribution-layer tools that sit between a referral and checkout will carry greater liability for opaque monetization, not just for privacy or security practices.
- The episode points toward affiliate marketing requiring clearer consent and auditability over who earns credit; the extent of change will depend on platform enforcement and advertiser demand for verifiable attribution.
The trend: Consumer browser tools are moving from opaque convenience layers toward greater accountability for how they monetize user transactions and creator-driven traffic.