Affiliate Disclosures

Last updated: January 2026

How We Make Money

A Pattern Darkly is an independently operated website. We earn money through affiliate partnerships with security and privacy companies. When you click certain links and make a purchase, we may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.

Our Affiliate Partners

We have affiliate relationships with companies including (but not limited to):

• Identity Protection: Aura, LifeLock, Identity Guard
• VPN Services: NordVPN, Proton VPN, ExpressVPN
• Password Managers: 1Password, Bitwarden, Dashlane
• Security Software: Bitdefender, Norton, Malwarebytes

Our Editorial Independence

Affiliate relationships do not influence our editorial content. We recommend products based on their merit, not their commission rates. If a product isn't good, we won't recommend it—even if they offer generous commissions.

We also recommend products that have no affiliate program (like Mullvad VPN) when we believe they're the best choice for readers.

How to Identify Affiliate Links

Affiliate links on this site are marked with disclosure text near the link or in boxes labeled as containing affiliate links. We aim to be transparent about our monetization.

Why This Matters

We believe you should know when someone has a financial incentive to recommend something. Affiliate income allows us to run this site without intrusive advertising or paywalls while maintaining editorial integrity.

Questions?

If you have questions about our affiliate relationships, contact: disclosure [at] apatterndarkly.com