Brave's privacy-focused web browser directed users to cryptocurrency websites via affiliate links, which the company leverages. Based on the idea that ads should be optional and web browsing private, Brave is accused of violating the trust of its users, who have not been actively informed of the practice. As a Twitter member @cryptonator1337 discovered, when a user enters the URL for the popular cryptocurrency exchange Binance, the browser directs the individual to the appropriate page via an autocomplete affiliate link. If the user made a purchase through the website, Brave would receive an amount for the referral. Subsequent investigations by other Twitter users have revealed that the practice is consistent across several high-end cryptocurrency websites, including Coinbase, Ledger, and Trezor.
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In response to outrage from members of the cryptocurrency community on Twitter, Brave CEO Brendan Eich has publicly apologized: “We made a mistake…we will never review leverage domains again, I promise.” His reason for the approach was that the company was "trying to build a viable business," which currently relies on serving optional ads to its users who pay cryptocurrency rewards. The affiliate income generated through these autocomplete links has been designed to supplement the company's existing revenue streams. “We do not depend for our survival on any part of affiliate income, our users want Brave to live,” he said. Eich also claimed that the practice did not disclose any user data to affiliate partners, in keeping with the stated goals of the Brave browser. , noting that the company had not actively attempted to hide the system." "Sneak" and "secretly" are wrong, as we are developing with all open source browser code on github (sic), and users typing binance pointing to us can see the default autocomplete code. affiliate," Brave CEO said. While Eich's big Twitter feed provides an explanation of the thinking behind the practice of affiliate links, some users will remain upset by the discovery, potentially undermining the spirit of transparency in which the project is based on.