Is any discrepancy in the numbers shaving or scrubbing?

No — a small gap of a few percent can be technical, like a delayed postback or a difference in time-zone cutoffs. The real signal is a consistent gap in one direction over weeks, not a one-off spike.

How do you tell shaving apart from a plain technical glitch?

A technical glitch is usually one-off, and the network fixes it quickly once you flag specific lead IDs. If the gap repeats month after month with a different excuse every time, that looks more like a system practice than a bug.

Should you drop a network at the first hint of a discrepancy?

Not immediately — gather a couple weeks of numbers first and raise it with your manager. Cutting ties over one disputed lead can cost you a perfectly good network over a false alarm.

Does postback tracking prevent shaving or scrubbing from happening?

It doesn't stop a network from being dishonest, but it gives you the data to catch it fast and argue it with evidence — without your own stats, you're just trusting whatever numbers you're shown.

How to Spot Affiliate Network Shaving and Scrubbing

Scrubbing and shaving are two ways a dishonest affiliate network can quietly cut your numbers: marking valid leads as invalid, or simply not counting some conversions at all. Here are the clear signs of each, and how to check the numbers yourself instead of taking a manager's word for it.

What shaving is

Shaving means the network credits you fewer conversions than actually happened — say, 100 real leads come in but only 80 show up in your stats, with the other 20 «lost» with no explanation. Once, it might be a technical glitch; as a pattern, it's a deliberate practice by that specific network.

What scrubbing is

Scrubbing means a lead is technically logged but marked invalid — fraud, duplicate, unreachable — for a reason you can't actually verify. Unlike shaving, the conversion shows up in the report, it's just tagged in a way that means you don't get paid for it.

Signs a network is cutting your numbers

The main signal is a consistent gap between your own tracking and what the network confirms, where the gap runs the same direction every time rather than bouncing around randomly. A second signal is a sudden jump in the «invalid» lead rate right after you ask for a higher cap or payout.

How to check the numbers yourself

Track conversions independently of the network's dashboard: APEX postbacks and S2S integrations, Keitaro ↔ FB CAPI for instance, give you your own real-time picture of conversions, not just whatever the network's panel shows. If you're consistently seeing 15-20% more conversions than the network confirms, week after week, that's grounds for a conversation backed by specific numbers, not just a hunch.

What to do once shaving or scrubbing is confirmed

Start with a conversation with your manager backed by specific dates, lead IDs, and the size of the gap — it's often one manager's practice, not the whole network's policy. If the gap doesn't get explained or fixed on a repeat basis, start shifting volume to another network gradually rather than waiting for it to «sort itself out».

FAQ

Is any discrepancy in the numbers shaving or scrubbing?: No — a small gap of a few percent can be technical, like a delayed postback or a difference in time-zone cutoffs. The real signal is a consistent gap in one direction over weeks, not a one-off spike.
How do you tell shaving apart from a plain technical glitch?: A technical glitch is usually one-off, and the network fixes it quickly once you flag specific lead IDs. If the gap repeats month after month with a different excuse every time, that looks more like a system practice than a bug.
Should you drop a network at the first hint of a discrepancy?: Not immediately — gather a couple weeks of numbers first and raise it with your manager. Cutting ties over one disputed lead can cost you a perfectly good network over a false alarm.
Does postback tracking prevent shaving or scrubbing from happening?: It doesn't stop a network from being dishonest, but it gives you the data to catch it fast and argue it with evidence — without your own stats, you're just trusting whatever numbers you're shown.

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