Okay, so I need to figure out how to send traffic from my website to Amazon affiliate links without Amazon knowing the traffic source. My website opens in a pop-under from AdCash traffic, and then redirects to Amazon. The goal is to prevent Amazon from detecting where the traffic is coming from. Let me think through how to approach this.

First, I should understand how Amazon tracks affiliate traffic. When someone clicks an affiliate link, Amazon typically uses cookies and the referral header to track where the traffic came from. The referral header shows the previous website, which in this case would be my site. If I want to hide that, I need to break the referral chain.

One method I’ve heard about is using a redirect. Maybe using a 301 or 302 redirect could help. But if I redirect directly from my site to Amazon, the referrer might still show my site. So maybe I need an intermediate step. Like, redirecting through another domain or server that doesn’t pass the referral information.

Another thought: using meta refresh tags on a page. If I have a page on my server that uses a meta refresh to redirect to Amazon, does that hide the referrer? I think some browsers might still send the referrer, but maybe not all. Alternatively, using JavaScript to redirect might change the referrer. Wait, JavaScript redirects can sometimes not send the referrer, depending on how it’s done. For example, using window.location.replace or window.location.href. But I’m not sure if that’s reliable across all browsers.

What about using a URL shortener? If I use a third-party URL shortener, would that mask the referrer? The problem is that the final redirect from the shortener to Amazon might still show the shortener’s domain as the referrer. But if I can control the redirects through the shortener, maybe that’s a way. But I don’t know if Amazon allows affiliate links to be shortened. Their terms of service might prohibit that.

Also, using a proxy server. If I set up a proxy that forwards the request to Amazon, the referrer would be the proxy’s domain. But setting up a proxy might be technically challenging and could have legal implications, especially if it’s seen as trying to hide the traffic source against Amazon’s terms.

Wait, but Amazon’s Associates Program Operating Agreement probably has clauses about disclosing affiliate links properly. If I’m hiding the traffic source, that might violate their terms. The user could get banned if caught. So even if technically possible, it’s risky.

Another idea: using a landing page that’s hosted on a different domain. If the user first lands on Domain A (the pop-under), then redirects to Domain B, which then redirects to Amazon. If Domain B doesn’t pass the referrer, maybe using rel=”noreferrer” in the link attributes. But how does that work with redirects?

Alternatively, using a link with rel=”noreferrer” attribute. For example, if the HTML link has that attribute, the browser shouldn’t send the referrer header. But does that work when doing redirects via JavaScript or server-side?

Let me check. If I have a link like <a href=”amazon.com/affiliate-link” rel=”noreferrer”>, then clicking it would prevent the referrer from being sent. But in this case, the traffic is coming from a pop-under via AdCash. So maybe the initial pop-under is opened without a referrer, then redirects. But how is the redirect happening? If it’s a server-side redirect from my site to Amazon, the referrer would still be my site unless steps are taken to suppress it.

Alternatively, using a double meta refresh. First redirect to an intermediate page with no referrer, then to Amazon. But I’m not sure how effective that is.

Wait, there’s also the possibility of using the Referrer-Policy HTTP header. If the server sends a Referrer-Policy: no-referrer header, then the browser won’t send the referrer. That could be set on the redirecting page. So if my site’s page that does the redirect includes that header, then when the user is redirected to Amazon, the referrer wouldn’t be sent. That might work. But does Amazon check other ways, like cookies or URL parameters?

Also, Amazon’s affiliate links use the affiliate ID in the URL, like tagging the URL with ?tag=affiliateID-20. So as long as that tag is present, Amazon knows it’s an affiliate link, but they might track the referrer to see where it’s coming from. If the referrer is missing or shows a different site, they might not know the original source.

But if the user is coming directly from my site, but the referrer is blocked, Amazon might still suspect something if all the traffic has no referrer. Or if they check the initial landing page before the redirect. For example, if the user first lands on my site, then is redirected, but the referrer is blocked, maybe that’s possible.

However, AdCash is the traffic source. So users are coming from AdCash to my site, which then redirects to Amazon. Wait, the original traffic is from AdCash, so the referrer when the user arrives at my site would be AdCash. Then my site redirects to Amazon. If my site’s redirect doesn’t send a referrer, then Amazon would see the user coming from my site without a referrer, but the affiliate link still has the tag. But maybe the user’s journey is AdCash -> My Site (pop-under) -> Redirect to Amazon. If the redirect from My Site to Amazon doesn’t send a referrer, then Amazon would see the traffic as direct or with no referrer, but the affiliate tag is still there. But does Amazon track the referrer for affiliate links? They might use the referrer to check if the traffic is coming from the approved affiliate sites.

Wait, but if I’m an affiliate, I have to disclose my website in the Amazon Associates account. So if the traffic is coming from a site that’s not listed in my account, that could be a problem. So if I’m sending traffic through a pop-under from AdCash to my site, which then redirects, but my site is approved in the Amazon Associates account, maybe that’s okay. But the user is asking to prevent Amazon from finding the traffic source, which might be because the traffic is coming from pop-unders or AdCash, which might be against Amazon’s terms.

Amazon’s terms likely require that the traffic is generated in a legitimate way, not through pop-unders or forced clicks. So even if the technical method works, the user might be violating the terms, leading to account suspension.

But focusing on the technical aspect: to prevent Amazon from seeing the referrer, the steps would involve ensuring that the HTTP referrer header is not sent when the user is redirected to Amazon. Ways to do this include:

1. Using a meta tag with referrer policy on the redirecting page:

<meta name=”referrer” content=”no-referrer”>

2. Setting the Referrer-Policy header on the server side to no-referrer.

3. Using a JavaScript redirect with window.location.replace or window.location.href after setting the referrer policy.

4. Using a redirect through a service that strips referrers, like some URL shorteners or anonymizing services.

However, each of these methods has potential issues. For example, not all browsers might respect the meta tag or header. Also, Amazon might still track the user via cookies or other means if they’ve visited the affiliate site before.

Another angle: using an intermediate page that opens in a new window without a referrer. For example, using target=”_blank” along with rel=”noopener noreferrer” on a link. But in a pop-under scenario, the user might not be clicking a link; it’s a pop-under that automatically redirects. So in that case, using JavaScript to open a new window with the Amazon link, and specifying no referrer.

Wait, when using window.open in JavaScript, you can potentially control the referrer. However, modern browsers restrict this for security reasons. For example, in Chrome, you can’t spoof the referrer via window.open. The referrer will still be the site from which the window was opened.

Alternatively, using a form POST method to redirect. Submitting a form to Amazon with a POST request might not send the referrer, but Amazon’s affiliate links are GET requests. Not sure if that’s feasible.

Another possibility: using an iframe. If the affiliate link is loaded in an iframe, the referrer would be the parent page. But if the iframe is from a different domain, cross-origin policies might block it. Also, Amazon might not allow their site to be embedded in an iframe due to X-Frame-Options headers.

This is getting complicated. Maybe the safest technical method is to set the referrer policy on the redirecting page to no-referrer, either via meta tag or HTTP header. That way, when the browser navigates to Amazon, it doesn’t send the referrer. However, this depends on browser support. Most modern browsers support referrer policies, so this might work.

But again, the ethical and legal considerations are significant. Amazon’s terms likely require transparency in traffic sources, and using such methods to hide referrers could lead to account termination if detected. Moreover, if the traffic is from pop-unders or forced clicks, that’s against Amazon’s policies, and they have ways to detect such behavior even without referrer information, like analyzing traffic patterns or user behavior.

In summary, while there are technical methods to suppress the referrer header, they may not be foolproof, and more importantly, they likely violate Amazon’s terms of service, putting the affiliate account at risk. The user should consider whether the potential revenue from this method is worth the risk of losing their affiliate account and any pending commissions.