20+ Best Cyber Security Affiliate Programs and Networks [2024]

In this day and age, cybersecurity is super important because all of us dwell on the Internet a few hours a day at least, and most of us don't take our security on the Internet as seriously as security in real life. However, the subject of cybersecurity is becoming more and more popular and more and more trendy. Therefore, it is the best time now to talk about cybersecurity as an affiliate. Even though the topic has been continuously discussed on social media for a very long time, and various affiliates are already working on promoting such offers, it's important for you to really grasp the way this niche is profitable, and how you can make a profit with it.

That is exactly why in this article we're taking the time to explore cybersecurity affiliate programs, what they are, how you can choose one, and how exactly you can promote one successfully in order to drive the most traffic and make the highest amount of Commission.


What are Cyber Security Affiliate Programs and How Do They Work

Cybersecurity affiliate programs and networks are businesses that provide cybersecurity services, hoping to connect with affiliates in order to promote their products and services. There are various types of cybersecurity programs that target different aspects of cybersecurity. Therefore, there are many different needs and audiences here as well. Because of that, there are various payment models available in this niche too. We will explore that in a minute.

As an affiliate, you need to connect potential customers with these affiliate programs and get a Commission and return. This Commission can be in various models, and you can get bonuses in different ways. Since most of the products and services in this niche are digital, you won't need to be worried about any sorts of returns, requests for refunds, or delivery fees. Almost everything is straightforward, and sometimes you'll even be able to get recurring payments for the subscription services. This is definitely one of the niches where you can see lots of recurring and residual income affiliate programs.

What Types of Products Can You Promote

Now that you know what cybersecurity affiliate programs are, let's see what exactly you can promote in this niche.

  • VPN Services: VPN (Virtual Private Network) services offer secure and private internet connections, encrypting data traffic and protecting user privacy. These services often come in subscription-based models, allowing users to choose different plans based on their needs.
  • Antivirus Software: Antivirus software helps protect computers and devices from malware, viruses, and other online threats. It can be purchased as a one-time license or as a subscription-based service, providing regular updates and real-time protection against evolving threats.
  • Password Managers: Password managers securely store and manage passwords for various online accounts, ensuring strong and unique passwords are used. They typically come in both free and premium versions, with additional features such as secure password sharing and synchronization across devices.
  • Cybersecurity Training Courses: Online cybersecurity training courses provide valuable knowledge and skills to individuals interested in enhancing their cybersecurity awareness and understanding. These courses are often offered as subscriptions, granting access to a range of training materials, tutorials, and assessments.
  • Hardware Security Devices: Hardware security devices, such as USB security keys or biometric authentication devices, add an extra layer of security to login processes and data access. These devices are usually one-time purchases and can be used across multiple devices.
  • Secure Web Hosting: Secure web hosting services ensure websites are hosted on servers with advanced security measures, protecting against common web-based attacks. These services are typically subscription-based, offering various hosting plans based on website size and traffic requirements.
  • Network Security Appliances: Network security appliances provide robust protection against network-based threats, such as firewalls, intrusion detection systems (IDS), or intrusion prevention systems (IPS). These appliances are often one-time purchases, with additional subscription-based options for firmware updates and support.
  • Data Backup and Recovery Solutions: Data backup and recovery solutions help individuals and businesses protect their critical data by creating backups and enabling easy recovery in case of data loss or system failures. These solutions can be subscription-based, providing cloud storage options and automatic backup schedules.
  • Penetration Testing Services: Penetration testing services assess the security of computer systems and networks by simulating real-world attacks. Companies offering such services often provide one-time engagements, with detailed reports and recommendations for improving security.
  • Mobile Security Apps: Mobile security apps protect smartphones and tablets from various threats, including malware, phishing attacks, and device theft. These apps are typically available as free or premium versions, offering additional features like app scanning, anti-theft capabilities, and secure browsing.

Payment Models in Cyber Security Affiliate Programs

There are various payment models available in cybersecurity affiliate programs and networks mainly thanks to the fact that there are various types of products and services to promote. In the previous section, we've explained what different types of products are like to promote, whether they are subscription-based services or products that sell for one-time payments. Let's check out the way programs choose to pay you based on the different ways they get paid for offering their products and services.

Revenue Share

The first payout model is a revenue share model, which entails getting a percentage of the value of the order as a reward for promoting the product or service. If it is a product with a one-time purchase, you will be getting an upfront percentage of the order value, and if it is a subscription-based service, you will be getting a recurring Commission most likely every month as long as the customer is paying them. Of course, in some cases, you can get paid a recurring Commission for a little shorter than the time your referrals are customers of the program.

For example, the program might only pay you for three months or 12 months after the customer has started becoming a subscriber. If you really care about this, we recommend you pay attention to how long exactly the program will be paying you for the recurring commissions. Also keep in mind that in this niche, the Commission rates are mostly ranging from 10% to 50% depending on the type of service and business involved.

Cost per Lead (CPL)

In this payment model, you will be paid a flat rate every time somebody becomes a lead for that affiliate program. A lead basically means a potential customer that has been brought to the program but does not necessarily pay for the program or make any specific purchase. They might just start a free trial, enter the payment information, sign up for the program, etc. There are various ways this lead can be defined, which the affiliate program will explain in their affiliate terms and conditions from the beginning. So if you are really interested to know how you will get paid by the program, make sure to read the affiliate terms and conditions carefully in order to know your rights and ways of earning money on the platform.

Cost per Sale (CPS)

In this last payment model, you will be getting a flat rate every time your referrals make a purchase. If you're wondering how this compares to the revenue share model you should know that in the revenue share model, you get a percentage of the product's value, but in this case, you will get a one-time payment in a flat rate. Keep in mind that this model is usually one of the most expensive ones, because the programs that have this model have one or two products or services that are super specific to a certain audience, and they want to make sure you get paid a lot of money for every single purchase. This means that you might get from $400 to $1000 in one single order from a referral. That means that the affiliate program knows they will be receiving much more than that throughout the lifetime of the customer.


What to Consider When Choosing a Cyber Security Affiliate Program

There are numerous factors to consider when selecting an affiliate program in the cyber security niche. You could try working with all the programs and reviewing their products, signing up for them, and so on. However, the general rule is to focus your efforts on the programs that are likely to provide a decent return on your investment. As a result, there are several factors to consider when selecting an affiliate program, and the most important ones in this niche are highlighted below.

Your Familiarity with the Products

To be an effective affiliate marketer, you should only promote products that you know well. If you lack experience with a product, it's important to do your research through online reviews, YouTube videos, or other resources. If you promote a product without knowing anything about it, your audience may lose trust in you, which could harm your reputation as an affiliate. As such, it's crucial to have some familiarity with the products you're promoting or at least have experience with similar products to ensure that you can provide accurate information to your audience and maintain their trust.

Commission Rate

When selecting an affiliate program, it is important to consider the commission rate and average order value. While a higher commission rate can translate to more earnings, it is not always the case. A high commission rate with a low average order value may not result in significant earnings. On the other hand, a low commission rate with a high average order value can still lead to substantial earnings. Therefore, it is essential to choose an affiliate program with a high commission rate and a high average order value to maximize earnings. It is important to strike a balance between the two factors and not focus solely on the commission rate.

Brand Recognition

The credibility of the brand you plan to work with is crucial. Avoid promoting a brand with bad reviews or poor customer impressions. Look for high-quality brands that keep their customers satisfied. Determine a brand's credibility by researching online reviews, unbiased websites, and forums like Quora or Reddit. Affiliate forums are also helpful in learning about specific affiliate programs. After reviewing all the feedback, you can make informed decisions about working with a brand that aligns with your standards.

Cookie Duration

The cookie duration is a crucial aspect of promoting an offer. It is essentially a tracker that records a visitor's activity on a website. The duration is the time period in which the program tracks the user's activity. This feature is beneficial as it counts any purchases made by the visitor, even if they had previously visited the website. For instance, if the program's cookie duration is 30 days, and the user visits the website once and then again 20 days later, any purchase made during the second visit will give a commission to the promoter.

Generally, the longer the duration, the higher the chances of earning a commission. The duration period in most affiliate programs is 30 days, but it can vary from 1 day to a lifetime. It's important to note that some programs offer a multi-tiered commission structure, which allows promoters to earn commissions from the purchases made by their referral's referrals. This can significantly increase earnings, making it a lucrative opportunity for affiliate marketers.

Payment Frequency

The majority of affiliate programs offer monthly commission payouts, which is ideal if you rely on affiliate marketing as a source of income. However, some programs may have specific terms that require them to pay out every two, three, or six months. This is not ideal, especially if you need a steady stream of income. Programs with longer payout periods may have these policies to avoid paying commissions before a product's warranty expires. It's important to carefully review the terms of any affiliate program you're considering to ensure that the payment frequency works for your needs. Additionally, some programs may have minimum payout thresholds, meaning you won't receive your commission until you've earned a certain amount. Be sure to factor in these details when selecting which affiliate programs to participate in.

Minimum Payout

Affiliate programs often have a minimum balance requirement that must be reached before a payout is made. The minimum balance can vary depending on the program, but it is typically around $50. If you prefer to receive payment as soon as possible, you may want to consider joining a program that does not have a minimum payout threshold. It's important to note that some programs may also have additional requirements, such as a minimum number of referrals or a waiting period before payouts are made. Be sure to carefully read the terms and conditions of any affiliate program before joining to avoid any surprises.

Affiliate Trackers

Affiliate trackers are tools used by affiliate marketers to gather data and statistics on the performance of their visitors on an affiliate program. These trackers are provided by the program and allow marketers to monitor clicks, signups, commissions, sales, bonuses, and other metrics. The availability of this information empowers marketers to gain more insight into their marketing strategies and make data-driven decisions to optimize their campaigns. Most affiliate networks offer an affiliate tracker as part of their dashboard, making it easy for marketers to access and analyze their performance data. By leveraging affiliate trackers, you can improve your ROI and maximize your earning potential.

Marketing Assets and Resources

Affiliate programs nowadays offer a variety of marketing assets and resources to their affiliates, including logos, banner ads, text links, pre-written content, visuals, imagery, icons, landing pages, and even entire websites. These resources can help affiliates to promote the products and services effectively and increase their revenue. However, not all affiliate programs provide these resources, or some may only offer a link. It is important to choose a program that offers comprehensive resources to make the job easier, especially for programs that rely heavily on visual marketing. In some cases, you may not have access to the product images, so it is essential for the program to provide them.

Additionally, some affiliate programs may offer product samples for affiliates to test and review, which can have a significant impact on the audience.

It's important to note that not all marketing assets and resources are created equal. Some programs may offer more resources, while others may offer higher-quality resources. It's crucial to review the provided resources carefully to ensure that they align with the affiliate's marketing strategy and brand image. Additionally, affiliates should consider the ease of use and customization of the resources. The more customizable the resources are, the more likely they are to resonate with the affiliate's audience and drive conversions.

Affiliate Support

If you're new to affiliate marketing and feel like you need some guidance to get started or simply want the peace of mind of having support when promoting a program, it's essential to ensure that the program has active and accessible affiliate support via chat or email. Luckily, many of the programs we recommend offer great affiliate support. However, you can always verify this by asking your peers on an affiliate forum.

Some affiliate programs provide a dedicated affiliate manager to send you regular emails and give you tips for increasing your earnings. Others may send you newsletters to inform you of the latest opportunities and products available to promote, including occasional promotions and seasonal events. It's also worth noting that some programs provide additional resources, like comprehensive guides and webinars, to help you succeed as an affiliate. With the right support, you can boost your income and achieve your goals as an affiliate marketer.

Application Process Time

When it comes to joining an affiliate program, time is of the essence. If you're eager to get started right away, it's important to find a program with a quick and efficient application process. Some programs can take weeks to assess your application and ultimately reject you, which can be a frustrating waste of time. On the other hand, some programs offer immediate access to their affiliate area, allowing you to get started right away. So, before you commit to filling out an application, make sure you research the program's application processing time. This small detail can save you a lot of time and hassle in the long run. Additionally, it's always a good idea to read the program's terms and conditions carefully before signing up to ensure you fully understand the agreement and any potential limitations or restrictions.

Performance-Based Bonuses

Affiliate programs like to reward their best affiliates for bringing in lots of sales. This could mean higher commissions or a fat bonus once you hit a certain sales goal. We've highlighted which affiliate programs on our list offer these kinds of rewards, so keep an eye out for them if you're interested. It's like getting a gold star for doing a good job, but instead of a sticker, you get more money.


Top Traffic Sources for Cyber Security Offers

Now that you know what cybersecurity affiliate programs are and how you can choose one, let's move on to actually promoting these offers. Here are some top traffic sources for promoting cyber security affiliate offers.

Social Media

The first and most important way to promote these offers has got to be social media. Especially in fields where cybersecurity is super important to the audience, this is a great way to promote them. If you're a streamer, a gamer, a developer, or anybody working in the tech industry, you have a great way to have these, and for the links in your video descriptions social media profiles, bios, etc. Of course, if you have an affiliate website or blog, or even a link tree page, you can put the affiliate links to all these cybersecurity programs in there in the form of articles, product reviews, or even just links.

One of the best ways to get people to actually sign up for these programs is to explain to them how important cybersecurity is. Searching the web anonymously, protecting your computer from viruses, etc. is super important nowadays. That is exactly why with the help of affiliates and content creators, those businesses can get to more people.

check out this example of a content creator sharing the link to their affiliated VPN in their video descriptions.

Of course, this is just one of the ways to promote these offers on social media. Depending on the service you're promoting, this way of promotion can be different as well. Maybe the full service of the affiliate program is something that is specifically your niche. For example, you might just be a cybersecurity consultant to yourself. In that case, promoting these offers would just count as a recommendation and not an actual promotion.

Forums and Communities

Cybersecurity is specifically famous on platforms like Reddit and social media platforms like Discord where users get to talk in servers about certain topics. If you want to easily promote these offers in forums or community group chats, make sure to follow the guidelines properly. You need to answer people's questions with useful information and also include links to your website or the deals you're promoting through a third-party link-saving website. If you have an affiliate website with some reviews of the product, that would be even better because the link would provide them with some more information they can learn about the service you're offering them.

Website Content

We've mentioned website content before, so let's talk about creating your website around cybersecurity.

First and foremost, you need to include useful information for your readers. If you want to write articles, review products, and spread knowledge, the best way is to have three types of articles, as the bare minimum. First of all, you need to list articles that include a list of different products in a certain category, for example, “best VPN services.” Then, you need to have guide articles that include Different knowledge base articles about cybersecurity itself. You might be providing a guide on how to work with a certain software or platform, etc.

The next type of article has got to be the product review articles. Lots of people will be looking for personal reviews of certain VPNs or security services in order to find out if others Are happy with the service or not. Keep in mind that many of the platforms you're affiliated with might not offer you a free trial of their service. In that case, you can either purchase the free trial and try the product for yourself, take a screenshot, include visuals in your product reviews, etc. Or you can watch some reviews online, read some peer ratings, or just ask people's opinions in certain forums in order to understand the ups and downs of each platform, software, or service.

Having the website also gives you the ability to share the latest promotions and deals with your audience. Whenever a reader visits your website, they can have these pop-ups shown to them that give them the details of the latest promotions available to catch. This is called a lead magnet, and it helps people by giving them a free resource in exchange for their e-mail. You can use this e-mail address later on in order to retarget them later with upcoming promotions, seasonal events, or any other type of deal that you receive from your affiliate program.

Plus, you get to use widgets and different API tools for incorporating those services on your own website. This gives the visitors an opportunity to try out those products and services if possible on your own website. This makes your website a white-label platform that becomes a playground for that service. In that case, users can interact with that widget and get redirected to the main website to complete their purchase.

A great example of a big affiliate who works in subscription-based cybersecurity affiliate programs is Adam Enfroy, and you can almost find his content on every single research result related to cybersecurity.

Paid Ads

If you just want some quick traffic, probably the best way is to leave ads on Google, Facebook, Instagram, or any other platform where people are actually looking for cybersecurity deals.

Make sure to check some ad spy tools in order to get the analytics you need from the ad spend of your competitors, watch some similar ads, do A/B testing, etc.

These ad spy tools help you get some insight into the creatives you need to use to become more successful.


Tips to Promote Cyber Security Affiliate Offers Successfully

Now that you know the top traffic sources for promoting cybersecurity affiliate offers, let's check out a few tips and tricks you can use to become more successful in this field.

Keyword Targeting

If you're not targeting the right keywords and incorporating them into your text the right amount, evenly, and naturally, there is a good chance your content will never show up in Google search results.

One of the biggest mistakes of beginner affiliates is that they use generalized keywords for their content. In order for you to get a lot of attention quickly if you're writing content, you need to target narrowed-down keywords that target specific visitors on the search engine. For example, if somebody searches for the best VPN services, there is a good chance you won't come to the 1stfew pages. However, if you put your focus on keywords like “Best VPN services for lower ping while gaming” You will actually have a chance to end up on the 1st page of search results. However, keep in mind that that is just an example but the idea is to narrow down the keyword to the exact search query with a commercial intent. This means that somebody will be searching that keyword in order to find the service they will actually end up trying. So they are mainly looking for the best deal when searching for such keywords. In order to find the best keywords, make sure to do extensive keyword research Through platforms like SEMrush, Google Trends, Google keyword planner, Ubersuggest, etc.

Promote Only What You Approve

A lot of new affiliates end up promoting services that they are not sure about, so their audience won't take them seriously either. If you want to be taken seriously by your audience, you need to try the products, including proof that you've tried them and have first-hand experience with them. This is mostly because you need to understand that the product you're promoting to your audience is actually good. If you are not happy with the product, why should you expect others to be? This is specifically the case of cybersecurity, so you want to make sure the service is going to guarantee the security of your referrals. Therefore, it is definitely worth a try to sign up for those services and test them out before you recommend them to anybody else.


Conclusion

Cybersecurity affiliate programs and networks have lucrative and amazing deals to Promote to an audience eager to try out ways to make their Internet browsing safer and safer. If you have an audience interested in tech, electronics, or anything related to the Internet, these deals will be great for them. If you want to find other deals and offers for your audience, make sure to check out other affiliate programs and affiliate networks to find more offers.