Honey’s Deal-hunting Browser Extension Is Accused Of Ripping Off Customers And Youtubers

The PayPal Honey browser clasp is, successful theory, a useful measurement to find amended deals connected products while you’re shopping online. But successful a video published this weekend, YouTuber MegaLag claims nan clasp is simply a “scam” and that Honey has been “stealing money from influencers, including nan very ones they paid to beforehand their product.”

Honey useful by popping up an relationship to find coupon codes for you while you’re checking retired successful an online shop. But arsenic MegaLag notes, it often fails to find a code, aliases offers a Honey-branded one, moreover if a elemental nett hunt will surface point better. The Honey website’s transportation is that it will “find each moving promo codification connected nan internet.” But according to MegaLag’s video, ignoring amended deals is simply a characteristic of Honey’s partnerships pinch its portion clients.

MegaLag too says Honey will hijack relationship gross from influencers. According to MegaLag, if you click connected an relationship nexus from an influencer, Honey will past move successful its ain hunt nexus erstwhile you interact pinch its woody pop-up astatine check-out. That’s sloppy of whether Honey recovered you a coupon aliases not, and it results successful Honey getting nan successful installments for nan sale, alternatively than nan YouTuber aliases website whose nexus led you there.

Paypal VP of patient communications Josh Criscoe said successful an email to The Verge that “Honey follows manufacture rules and practices, including last-click attribution.”

MegaLag isn’t nan first to make specified claims. A 2021 Twitter station advises utilizing Honey’s discount codes successful a different browser to debar it taking nan relationship credit. A Linus Media Group worker too explained successful a 2022 forum reply that Linus Tech Tips dropped Honey arsenic a sponsor complete its relationship nexus practices.

Honey’s convenience has resulted successful nan clasp being recommended widely, including successful almost 5,000 Honey-sponsored videos crossed astir 1,000 YouTube channels, according to MegaLag. We’ve moreover recommended it coming astatine The Verge; now we do not.

Here is Criscoe’s afloat statement:

Honey is free to usage and provides millions of shoppers pinch further savings connected their purchases whenever possible. Honey helps merchants trim cart abandonment and comparison shopping while expanding income conversion.