Extending Sale Period Thu Cookies?

Technically possible? Unethical?

[kmander]

Although I understand aff marketing pretty well, I haven't really thought about how the process technically works until now. When a surfer clicks on an CJ (for example) aff link, they are taken to CJs tracking site which then passes a cookie onto their computer and then finally the visitor is forwarded onto the merchant.

I assume the details of these cookies dictate the length of the sale period in which sales will credit the affiliate. Given this, would it not be possible for the affiliate to provide the surfer with a cookie with an artificially inflated expiry period. Then the visitor can be forward to merchant.com (non-aff link) where the cookie will be read (and not overwritten) and credit given accordingly? Or is it a case that the cookie is read to authenticate its source?

I guess the merchant nor CJ would like this but there are some other legitmate reasons for doing such a thing.

[jcoronella]

I assume the details of these cookies dictate the length of the sale period

Typically the cookie just contains the date you entered the site and from which affiliate. At least in the case of Linkshare, the cookie expiration does not correspond with the offer/sale (it is usually as permanent as possible). The user expiration is done on the back end.

[kmander]

Thus it is impossible to provide the visitor with an authentic cookie?

[fidibidabah]

The answer was stated, although possibly not clearly enough for someone who's life isn't the business :D

Basically, the cookie that resides on the user end is simply identification, and a date. The point of the cookie (as is most any) is to live as long as possible.

The actual extended date for crediting sales to an affiliate, for most merchants, is done on what was described as the 'back end'.

In other words, when a visitor comes back 38 days later with a cookie involving a date and a unique identifier, the 'script' or 'code', if you will, on the server side (the merchants 'computers', if you will) decide whether the aff is eligible for the commission.

Again, not the way they all work, but it's fairly standard.