Legal
Last updated: April 19, 2026
SecureToolsLab.com is an independent review site for password managers, antivirus software, and identity protection services. We are reader-supported and funded primarily through affiliate commissions. This page explains exactly how that works so you can evaluate our reviews with full context. This disclosure is provided in accordance with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR Part 255 guidelines on endorsements and testimonials.
When you click a link on this site and purchase a subscription from the vendor we linked to, we may receive a commission from that vendor. This commission comes from the vendor's marketing budget — it is not added to your price and does not cost you anything extra. Many vendors run promotions that offer the same or better pricing through our links as direct visits.
We currently maintain, or have applied to maintain, affiliate relationships with the following categories of vendors. When you see a product from this list recommended on our site, assume we have a financial interest in referring you:
Password managers: NordPass (active), 1Password, Dashlane.
Antivirus and malware protection: Norton (including LifeLock), Malwarebytes, Bitdefender.
Identity theft protection: Aura, LifeLock.
Privacy and encryption: Proton VPN, Proton Mail, Proton Pass, Proton Drive (all via partner.proton.me, affiliate ID 17190).
Programs marked as "active" are currently sending commissions for qualifying purchases. Programs not marked as active are pending application approval or are included on this site without an active commission relationship.
Commission rates do not determine our rankings. We assess password managers, antivirus products, and identity protection services on objective criteria: independent lab test results (AV-TEST, AV-Comparatives, SE Labs for antivirus), cryptographic architecture and audit history (for password managers and encryption tools), breach response and incident history, feature set relative to competitors, app quality across Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android, customer support responsiveness, and price-to-value ratio.
Where two products perform similarly in a category, we note both and let the reader decide. Where we have material concerns about a vendor we hold an affiliate relationship with, we publish the concerns anyway. Several of our comparison pages rank products above competitors whose affiliate economics we find more attractive, because rankings are based on testing outcomes rather than commission rates.
Affiliate links on this site open in a new tab and carry the rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" attribute so they do not pass on ranking signals and so the destination site cannot read the referring URL. Non-affiliate informational links to vendor documentation or third-party test results carry only rel="nofollow".
Where we recommend physical security products (such as hardware security keys, for example YubiKey or Google Titan) in our guides, we may use Amazon Associates links. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases at no additional cost to the reader.
You are never obligated to use our affiliate links. If you prefer to buy directly, navigate to the vendor's website manually — you will receive the same public pricing. We appreciate it when readers choose to use our links, since that is what keeps this site online and free to use, but it is always your choice.
If any part of this disclosure is unclear, please reach out through our contact page. We respond to disclosure-related questions within a few business days.