Link Cloaking

Link cloaking is the practice of replacing a long affiliate tracking URL with a short redirect on the publisher's own domain, such as yoursite.co.uk/go/brand. The reader clicks the tidy link, the server sends them through the network's tracking URL, and the sale is credited as normal. Cloaking changes how a link looks, never whether it is commercial.

How link cloaking works

A publisher creates a redirect rule, through a WordPress plugin, a server rule or a link management tool, that maps a short path to the full affiliate link. Awin, CJ, Impact and other networks still record the click, because the redirect passes the visitor to their tracking URL with the tracking ID intact. The cloaked path is simply a pointer.

Publishers use it mainly for maintenance. One redirect can be updated centrally when a programme moves network, a product is discontinued or a deep link changes. Short links are also easier to read out in podcasts and videos, and harder to strip or tamper with.

Example of link cloaking

Imagine a home appliance review site with 200 articles linking to one retailer through yoursite.co.uk/go/retailer. If the retailer moves to a different network, the publisher changes a single redirect instead of editing 200 pages. Had each article carried the raw tracking URL, every link missed in the update would earn nothing after the switch.

Link cloaking vs vanity URL

A vanity URL is a short, branded address owned by the advertiser, such as brand.co.uk/podcast, usually created for offline or audio campaigns. Link cloaking is done by the publisher, on the publisher's own domain, to manage outbound affiliate links. Both are redirects, but they sit on opposite sides of the relationship.

Neither is the "cloaking" in Google's spam policies, which means showing search engines different content from what users see. An honest affiliate redirect is not that, but a deceptive redirect breaks a separate Google policy.

Why link cloaking matters

For publishers, cloaking is a tidiness tool, not a disguise. The ASA says affiliate content must be obviously identifiable as marketing, and both the brand and the affiliate are responsible. A cloaked link still needs clear disclosure that readers see before they click, not a note buried at the foot of the page. It also helps to mark these links with rel="sponsored", which Google asks sites to use for paid links.

For advertisers, cloaked links on editorial sites are normally harmless, but check how your programme terms treat redirects. A masked destination in paid search or email can make brand bidding or unapproved traffic harder to spot, so many advertisers set rules for those channels.

Common link cloaking mistakes

The most damaging mistake is using cloaking to make a commercial link look neutral, for example presenting it as a source or reference. Another is a redirect that drops the click ID or sub-ID on the way through, so always check that a test click appears in the network report. Finally, keep a register of every redirect, because forgotten /go/ links quietly send readers to expired offers.

For more on earning well from editorial content, read our guide to content publisher monetisation and affiliate strategies that convert.