Anti-Fraud & Scam Toolkit / Tool 13

Referral & Affiliate Decoder

An endorsement can be independent or part of a paid acquisition route. Examine the relationship between the content, link, provider and possible compensation.

01 / The mechanism

Who is speaking — and who benefits from the click?

Affiliate models can reward a click, registration, deposit or later revenue. Arrangements differ; an affiliate link is not automatically improper. Readers need to understand the economic connection and assess whether the endorsement is supported by verifiable evidence.

Search result / postEndorsement / linkProvider / sign-upPossible compensation
02 / Read the link

What can you see in the URL?

Paste a public link. The tool parses it only in your browser and does not visit the address. A parameter such as ref or clickid can suggest attribution or campaign measurement, but does not prove a specific commission.

03 / Examine the content

Six questions about the endorsement.

Answer only from what you can see in the page or post. The result provides questions to pursue, not a legal finding.

01 Is compensation or another connection to the provider clearly disclosed alongside the endorsement?
02 Is personal experience claimed without explaining what was actually tested?
03 Does a search headline such as “Is provider X a scam?” imply special research but mainly lead to a sign-up link?
04 Are alternatives and drawbacks compared with a clear explanation for the selection?
05 Does the click pass through another domain or lead to a destination different from what was first apparent?
06 Have authorisation, legal entity and the specific service been checked independently of the endorsement?
Next step

Check the endorsement and provider separately.

The referral route explains how you reached an offer. It does not establish whether the legal entity, authorisation and service align. For a financial provider, begin with I‑SCAN and verify the original record.

I‑SCAN ↗Imprint & Entity Check →Finfluencers and affiliate models →Search-question affiliate pages →

Original sources and limits

Legal assessment depends on the content, connection and applicable law. These sources explain disclosure and conflicts; this tool makes no finding about a specific post.

UWG § 5a ↗ · ESMA · Social-media recommendations ↗ · FTC · Endorsement Guides ↗