🖕 Fuck PayPal
And fuck Linus Tech Tips for intentionally keeping quiet about this after they found out.
I never trusted Honey to begin with but this goes far deeper than I ever expected. I always wondered “yeah, but where do they get their money?” I always figured it was just a way to take people’s data and sell it to data brokers (which they probably also do, let’s be honest) but this is just blatant fraud. Stealing affiliate money from links and having companies pay them to purposefully give out worse coupon codes is just devious through and through. It’s basically free money and everybody else, whether influencer or consumer, get fucked over in the process.
I always assumed it was a combination of your guess and companies giving Honey special coupon codes so consumers are more eager to spend.
“Hey Honey, we’ll give you 1% commission if you just host this HONEY5 coupon for 5% off.”
That was my impression when I used it once. Wasn’t worth having an extension just for a slight discount. Love when a company doesn’t fulfill the service they advertise.
But that would be an ethical business model, we can’t have that, this is PayPal and this is the internet. There’s no place for ethics in that combination.
everybody else, whether influencer or consumer, get fucked over in the process.
Enshittification correctly defined.
Same. I never downloaded it or anything like it but I didn’t realize they were playing both sides. It’s fucked.
Yeah I always wondered what the catch was? The CEO was always posting on Reddit trying to defend honey and how cool they were.
Either way, I never trust any shopping deal plugins. The whole idea of them is sketchy.
Only shopping plugin I use is the one that comes with Edge. Surprisingly good to track price history and find other sites selling the product. I considered some Chrome plugin that displays an Amazon product’s country of origin to avoid Chinesium but apparently it didn’t work well or something like that from reading the reviews. Had some attached rewards function for shopping with it, ick.
There’s a good one for Amazon called Keepa that shows you the price history of the item. Helps a ton keeping prices in check during sales like Prime Day to see how much you are actually saving, if anything.
Also nice to see how much you could potentially save if you just wait for the next sale or if there was already a price decrease. Often times it looks like I’m good buying without waiting for any sale as the sales only knocked off a few dollars, at most.
Triple Camel does this too
Nice! Thanks for the recommendation, I love having alternatives in case anything unexpectedly goes down.
Thank you for the recommendation, looks neat. Tracking prices of different conditions is a nice touch. I’ll have to scrutinize it further when I make my next online purchases and chuck it into Edge as I made that my dedicated shopping browser.
It’s funny how Edge got lambasted for it when they introduced that feature, but it’s legitimately super helpful and non-invasive.
I had no idea it was, I don’t keep up with browser news. I just wish they didn’t migrate to Chromium. It became my main browser for a brief period before that.
I just used it randomly when I was working and doing some shopping for a computer in my downtime and decided to try out the feature. That and the AI are super good when combo’ed to shop smart. Managed to save $800 off a quality laptop.
I use this extension to get a general idea of whether a product usually goes for cheaper and whether or not to wait. Really conveniently on the Amazon page directly.
Also pcpartpicker to track pc parts. Isthereanydeals for game prices.
Just saw a video that the honey people are making another SCAM called PIE. They make an Ad blocker, then put their own ads. wtf.
https://www.youtube.com/embed/VTxnM3J0I0k?width=828&height=466
I guess most people don’t have much knowledge about affiliate link URLs and how easily they can be rewritten to shift where the commission goes. I implemented SkimLinks on a hunch of websites so I’ve seen it before. Forum owners used to get upset about anyone posting product links in their comments because they night include an affiliate code. SkimLinks adds JavaScript to every page that rewrites those codes to the forum owner’s personal account. It will even insert an affiliate code into basic Amazon links that don’t have one. Once this came out, forums went a lot easier on Amazon links.
After seeing all this, the second I spot a browser extension that wants to get between me and Amazon, I immediately assume they will rewrite all the links for their own benefit. Otherwise what’s in it for them? This news isn’t much of a surprise.
The biggest issue that this video brings up is that businesses can filter out certain coupon codes if the discount is too high
If you’re sitting at a poker table and you can’t tell who the sucker is, it’s you.
Alternately, if you look at an online service and can’t tell what the product is, It’s you.
And even if you can tell what the product is, it‘s still often you. “Premium” subscriptions for example might hide (some) ads, but services still collect as much data about you. Even grocery stores where the offer seems obvious are trying to bait you into installing their apps to collect data on top of charging you for every item. And sure it’s not relevant in this case, but it’s something we should never forget.
By that logic, linux users are the product.
I mean, yes?
The key difference is linux wants you to help make it better. Something like Honey steals your data, and steals money from others, and then wants you to make it better.
Linux is neither an online service, nor a business at all.
Except Linux has proper legal underpinnings that anyone with a few brain cells can verify.
You can compile your own code too
Hence why people always say do your diligence
Yeah, I feel like that’s usually a very accurate saying, but it doesn’t really work with a lot of open source projects.
I hate that you’re getting downvoted by so many people who don’t realize you’re pointing out an exception to the rule, and instead think you have some fundamental misunderstanding about how Linux works.
They are getting downvoted for misconstruing something that is clearly a rule about profit making services and applying it to crowd sourced non-profit open source projects.
Truly open source projects don’t have suckers.
misconstruing something that is clearly a rule about profit making services
To be honest I don’t think that’s clear at all, it feels like it’s more a rule about being skeptical of free stuff online. And many for profit companies have open source projects that can be used safely even though the source is a for-profit.
It’s difficult for others to take advantage of you when you can learn what the software actually does and have it modified to work another way.
Linux (for the most part) is open source but I’d argue the inclusion of any proprietary software/firmware/drivers means something ultimately isn’t.
No? The OS is the product.
I think the issue was with the original commenter’s phrasing. Facebook looks like a product. But the commenter meant “How the product is being funded”.
Of course, it gets hard when there’s multiple sources of revenue. You used to be able to spot ads and come to the conclusion that that was everything. Now an ad is just the tip of the iceberg.
Why do I feel like mentioning the LTT was very personal?😂
They’re one of the largest tech media companies and deliberately chose to sweep this under the rug instead of reporting on it. Then they took sponsorships from Karma, which is a competitor to Honey that does the exact same thing.
No, they are not one of largest tech media companies They have less than what 100 employees. Maybe you used the wrong term?
When did they learn about it? Where your proof?
- It’s the holidays and a lot of content of made awhile, I don’t expect them to make dedicated statement.
First of all, Lemmy has a lot of users for whom English is a second language. So maybe don’t be a jackass about correcting grammar.
Secondly, in case you happen to be in that group of people ‘largest media company’ in this context applies to their reach, and not to their actual size. They are ‘large’ because they have a large audience, generate a lot of revenue, and are worth a lot of money. LMG also comprises 10 different YouTube channels with maybe 10 billion views between them.
Look I’m not correcting grammar, I’m not native English speaker myself + I’m very dyslexic.
But when someone says the biggest tech media companies, you put them in same category as Disney, Apple and so on, which makes them very small.
Sometimes people exaggerate and if you point out what they said is inaccurate then they get mad you’re not addressing their main point.
People are going mad anyways, doesn’t really matter especially here on lemmy ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
People are putting the blame on creators, instead of PayPal/honey, when creators are the victims too. We don’t know the full story from LLT from their side if “deliberately chose to sweep this under the rug instead of reporting on it”
If I’m questioning it, I’m going to get negative feedback because the narrative is they are to blame because they are “big”.
seriously… did you watch the video?
https://youtu.be/vc4yL3YTwWk?t=785
Here. Here’s a link to the exact moment that entire chapter starts.
I watched it, but I’ll reserve my judgment until the next wan show because I don’t know if it has been mentioned before on an earlier show or how the problem has been interpret by staff.
… Ok well here’s the link to the moment (in the video you watched) where we have one **staff ** member giving an official response to how LTT interpreted the problem in a forum post on their website.
https://youtu.be/vc4yL3YTwWk?t=811
And here’s a link to their youtube channel where they talk about honey
https://www.youtube.com/@LinusTechTips/search?query=honey
You’ll notice. There isn’t one.
So for at least two years, they knew honey was stealing affiliate links and considered it a big enough problem to end their partnership, but did not consider it a big enough issue to make a video on it.
I dunno why you keep sending me a bunch of text and videos. I’m going to wait until the next wan show, so I can understand what really happened inside.
I’m down to listen to their response myself but as someone who tried really hard to explain away their last dumb controversy only to be proven wrong multiple times, I wouldn’t be surprised if it was just pure negligence. Actions speak louder than words and their actions have shown they’re a flawed company like any other despite what their conversations on WAN show would have you believe.
Fuck Honey/PayPal first and foremost, don’t get me wrong. But unless there were legal issues around it, we also can’t ignore it if the biggest tech YouTube channel found out about one of the biggest sponsors on YouTube being a scam, stopped working with them for that reason, but said absolutely nothing to anyone else.
When did they learn about it? Where your proof?
Watch the video.
LTT says to have not known users were being mistreated at the time they dropped the sponsor, and that they didn’t discover it but were informed.
Pretty sure this was already posted yesterday when it came out. Or it might have been a different community.
Watching the full video is important though because they are scamming the consumer too, not just “”“influencers”“”. Someone made a great comment about how it’s just one greedy troll stealing from another and has no effect on the consumer since they still save money but Honey not actually giving you the best coupons on purpose is next level dickholery.
Lying about the coupons really should be the focus so people stop harming themselves using Honey.
I used Honey before thr PayPal purchase and it did have working discount codes, as well as a cashback thing that I redeemed a couple times. But I haven’t had any codes work for a long time.
I don’t have any love for influencers but they have the right to make money IMO, and it’s completely shitty behavior for honey to be taking that away from them.
See, I’m torn. I’ve never used honey, so I was never scammed. However I do think them scamming consumers is awful.
Buuuuuuuut, I DO enjoy the fact that they scammed influencers.
Yeah I thought that too until seeing the bits about consumers getting shafted. Awful company, hope they get sued into bankruptcy.
They are owned by PayPal, so that seems unlikely
Small content creator makes informative, honest review of a product. Honey gets money on the commission. This makes you happy?
It’s also kind of a protection racket against shops. “Partner with us or we’ll cut into your profits by spreading cheap coupon codes, but partner with us and we’ll protect you”
I never use affiliate links AND I don’t bother looking for coupons (let’s be honest, who does?) so I don’t give a crap, every now and then I’m saving money without taking it from anyone 🤷
I just look up price trends and that’s pretty much it for me too. Coupons rarely ever worked for me in the early days of e-commerce so I quickly stopped bothering.
idk, I find the coupon thing to be super easy. Just takes one search and maybe two clicks if you have ad blockers on. Mostly the only time is if I’m ordering something like pizza for a get together where no special applies. There’s a local chain in my state that had a coupon code for half off my order that wasn’t listed on their site (they might’ve given it to me if I called but who knows). Been using that for the past year and it allows me to convince everyone to go there instead of a national chain. I’ve also been lucky with some manufacturers coupons for products I’m ordering straight from them, it’s more rare though so it’s hit or miss sometimes.
I deleted my PayPal account a couple of months ago already. Problem solved.
Wait, when did Paypal buy Honey? 😳
2020 for $4 billion.
And Honey has always worked like this. So PayPal knew exactly what they were buying which explains the price tag. Paypal knew they were going to make their money back and then some.
I haven’t trusted LTT for about 5 years now.
Agreed. I remember enjoying their workshop videos a long time ago, but they can’t even be trusted for PC building info, much less anything else.
If something advertises on youtube it’s a scam. Simple to remember really.
I don’t mind things that are an actual thing to buy. I want to research it first–you can get a better electric razor than Manscaped for not much more–but at least it’s clear how they make their money. Honey was obviously getting money from someone other than their users, and that’s an immediate red flag.
I and many other people naturally assumed that honey was getting their money from consumer data collection. Which is why I didn’t use the service myself. The surprise is the fact that the scam isn’t just consumer data collection but actually stealing commissions from content creators as well as using consumers as a gateway to stealing money from businesses that they have contracts with.
Yeah. PayPal bought a coupon browser extension for how much? If the only thing they do is save YOU money, how come they can afford a sponsored segment in a mr beast video?
This isn’t even remotely true. There are lots of advertisers and sponsors that aren’t scams. But unfortunately our consumer protection laws haven’t quite caught up to the digital marketplace. So there is a lot of room on the internet in general for scammy behavior.
As always, it’s buyer beware. As well as a big amount of content creator beware as well.
That’s why I did not buy an eco flow or jackary. Too many influencers was a turn off. I went with BLUETTI.
Is nebula also a scam? I saw it sponsored on lots of youtube channels.
I don’t really wanna watch a video… but how do you “steal” affiliate links or coupon codes?
If you are doing affiliate marketing for a company and they give you a coupon code for 10% off called GET10OFF and that code gets used, the affiliate marketer gets the sale no matter where they got that code from?
I’ve slept since I watched and am not great with tech, but iirc the link with the affiliate code when clicked takes you to the site. Then honey has a pop up that, when clicked, replaces the link with their own, swiping the commission. Hope that makes sense - most people likely would not catch it. The Linus tech tips was used as an example of even a tech channel with lots of employees taking quite a while to notice themselves, and even when they did, it wasn’t quite conclusive for some reason?
Another thing the video touched on is that honey would claim to search for coupons but often opt to show what the partnered companies want. So, could be there’s a coupon for 50% but they only show 10%.
Ah gotcha. So what I said about coupon codes would be valid, but affiliate links are different than the coupon codes. Also crazy they hide bigger discounts.
Edit: But I guess they could find a company offering a coupon code, then sign up themselves knowing it’s an option now, and then show that code instead.
He says that when you click on an affiliate link, a cookie gets stored on your browser that lasts for 30 days, saying that the source should get the commission for your purchase. Honey has a popup in checkout, even when there are no codes, with a big “Got It” button to close the popup. Clicking the Got It button replaces the old cookie with a Honey cookie, giving the commission from your purchase to them instead of your source.
and thats only one of the problems he mentions in the video
I assume it looks for affiliate links and replaces the original with it’s own affiliate ID.
Literally just watched that. I agree with his consideration that that’s fraud.
Ltt didn’t hide shit, they posted it on a public forum
If only they had some medium to post the information, perhaps a medium that that VAST MAJORITY of their viewers use.
“But the plans were on display…”
“On display? I eventually had to go down to the cellar to find them.”
“That’s the display department.”
“With a flashlight.”
“Ah, well, the lights had probably gone.”
“So had the stairs.”
“But look, you found the notice, didn’t you?”
“Yes,” said Arthur, “yes I did. It was on display in the bottom of a locked filing cabinet stuck in a disused lavatory with a sign on the door saying ‘Beware of the Leopard.”
I knew this was Douglas Adams by the tone but had to look it up to realize it was Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Time for a re-read!
Their complaint was that honey inserted their affiliate cookie even when they didn’t find a coupon code for you. I doubt they knew the full extent of the scam.
Plus, we don’t know what was in their contract with honey. They could still be subject to a non-disparagement clause.
GN doesn’t seem to have a problem holding their sponsors accountable, putting a story together, doing their due diligence, and then letting everybody know.
Yeah, that not nothing but it isn’t far off. They have a massive platform. It deserved at least a video telling people about it.
They didn’t hide it, but a huge portion of their audience doesn’t read the forums. A 10 minute video of Linus ranting about them would have opened this scandal to a wider audience years ago.
Linus usually likes to rant about it on the WAN show then they usually make a clip for YouTube, but weird he didn’t do that for honey, maybe he didn’t know how far the scam went.
Linus said it would be on this week’s WAN show
Especially considering he hasn’t been shy about ranting about a lot of things from (insert latest apple thing) to “fucking eggshell”
Could have a non disparagement clause in their former agreement
non disparagement clause
Not the level of a non-compete clause but that’s a scummy thing I hope is not legal.
It’s fairly common. As far as legal, that will depend on the jurisdiction and the mood of the judge.
As creator that makes some of their profits from affiliate links, I don’t see how that could be the case for him.
Seems more likely they had a reason to avoid beef with PayPal.
There may have been non-disclosure agreements between Linus tech tips and PayPal Honey. They may have threatened to sue him if he went public. I’m assuming we’ll find out the details in the next few weeks.
And then they took sponsorships from Karma which does the exact same thing
Some very vocal people on Lemmy just love hating on LTT. I don’t think this topic was worth them making a main channel video on, I think their forum post was good and I believe they even mentioned this functionality of Honey a few times on the WAN show. It wasn’t a secret, and anyone who cared to do in-depth research on a potential sponsor could have found out.
And yet here’s the scandal being exposed TWO YEARS LATER. Yeah, LTT couldn’t possibly have handled this better… /s
They told everyone and nobody cared, turns out people care if a YouTube video is made framing the same thing differently. Like yeah, Honey’s practice is bad for the creator industry, but is it bad enough to bring it back to the people who took their money? No, I don’t think so.I think this is more of an example of how easy it is to get the masses angry with a YouTube video than anything. It’s good that more people are going to move away from this information harvesting app, but I really feel like the reaction and hatred is overblown and, at least for the hatred towards creators, unwarranted.
The way I see it, people still take money from predatory gambling sites, and if any creator deserves pushback, it’s them.
They could have been exposed to legal liability to report on a business partner like that.
[Added information: LTT say they were unaware Honey was mistreating users. So they had no reason to make a video at the time they dropped Honey for mistreating them.]
I don’t think this topic was worth them making a main channel video on
Their viewers getting scammed by tech they promoted isn’t worth a video on their main channel? If they could legally do it I think they should have.
Some very vocal people on Lemmy just love hating on LTT
LTT have made mistakes (edit: and made choices/comments I would disprove of) but the dunking here does seem disproportionate.
I’m definitely noticing a lot of hate warranted or not bjt it’s honestly also been hard to defend them after their last “scandal”. Once bitten twice shy…
Same reason I don’t try to give CD Projekt RED the benefit of the doubt anymore even though I loved Cyberpunk despite the messed up launch, and it seems they’ve largely redeemed themselves - I now realize where their priorities lie.
This isn’t anything new. Brave browser does this, ad hijacking is a common thing. Many companies have been doing this for years, why is it only coming up now?
That doesn’t include users being a victim? Honey gives users worse coupons when better ones are available, apparently that happens if companies do a deal with Honey.
The best time to burn down a poisonous tree was 20 years ago etc etc
