Motorola phones have started hijacking the Amazon app to insert affiliate codes [Video]
Some Motorola phones are briefly opening Chrome to reroute Amazon launches through affiliate links. Disabling the preloaded Smart Feed app appears to stop it.
Intelligence analysis by GPT-5.4 Mini
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A Motorola software update appears to hijack Amazon app launches from the app drawer, send users through a browser redirect, and inject an affiliate code. The behavior traces to the preloaded Smart Feed app, affects at least some Razr models, and can be disabled.
A Motorola phone seems to be taking a tiny detour when someone tries to open Amazon. Instead of going straight there, it flashes a browser window and then slips in an extra tracking code.
It is like walking into a store and finding a helper who quietly changes the route on the way to the checkout. The shopper still gets to Amazon, but someone else may get credit for the visit.
The article says turning off a built-in Motorola app called Smart Feed stops the behavior on affected phones. That makes the story about phone software, hidden redirects, and whether the phone maker is too involved in where users go.
Analysis
What happened
9to5Google says some Motorola phones began intercepting attempts to open the Amazon app from the app drawer. Instead of launching Amazon directly, the phone briefly opens Chrome and then redirects into Amazon with an affiliate code attached.
Where it seems to come from
The article traces the behavior to Motorola's preloaded Smart Feed app. A Reddit user first noticed the issue on a Razr 60 Ultra and used ADB logs to show the launcher sending users to a URL rather than opening the app they expected. Network logs also showed requests to devicenative.com, which the piece says is a service that places ads on smartphones and claims integration with Motorola.
Scope and uncertainty
The report says the behavior did not appear on a Razr running an older Smart Feed version, but it did appear on a Razr Fold after updating to Smart Feed v2.03.0070. The outlet could not reproduce it on a Moto G Stylus (2026) with the same app version, and sideloading the app on the Razr did not trigger the redirect in the same way. Motorola had been contacted for comment at the time of publication.
What users can do
The article says disabling Smart Feed through Settings > Apps > Smart Feed > Disable stops the redirect immediately on affected devices. The author also notes that the redirect path is unusually strange, involving a website tied to a fashion influencer and an Amazon affiliate code that does not appear to match the influencer's own links.
Bottom line
The story points to a recent Motorola software update that changes how one common shopping app opens, and it does so in a way that appears designed to capture affiliate revenue without the user's intent.
Key points
- Some Motorola phones are reportedly redirecting Amazon app launches through Chrome and adding an affiliate code.
- The behavior appears to come from Motorola's preloaded Smart Feed app, not from Amazon itself.
- 9to5Google says the issue showed up after a Smart Feed update on at least one Razr Fold device.
- Disabling Smart Feed in Settings appears to stop the redirect on affected phones.
- The article says Motorola had been contacted for comment, but no explanation was available at publication time.
