How STACK handles commercial relationships
STACK is built first and foremost as an independent research publication.
At the time of writing, STACK has not yet joined affiliate programs or entered into affiliate relationships with the products we cover.
That may change in the future.
If and when STACK begins using affiliate links, this page will explain how those relationships work and how they are kept separate from editorial conclusions.
What an affiliate link means
An affiliate link is a tracked link that may allow a publisher to earn a commission if a reader later purchases a product or service.
If STACK introduces affiliate links in the future:
- the reader should not normally pay more because a link is affiliated;
- some links may contain tracking parameters;
- STACK may receive a commission from qualifying purchases;
- not every product we cover will necessarily have a commercial relationship with us.
The existence of an affiliate relationship will not make a claim more true, an audit more meaningful, or a product more suitable for a particular reader.
Those questions remain governed by the evidence.
Commercial relationships will not determine editorial conclusions
If STACK monetizes through affiliate relationships in the future, those relationships will not determine:
- which companies we investigate;
- what evidence we include;
- which weaknesses we report;
- how we characterize unresolved issues;
- which product wins a comparison;
- whether we recommend a product;
- whether we publish a critical finding.
A company will not receive a more favorable conclusion simply because STACK can earn money from it.
Likewise, a company without an affiliate program will not be downgraded because there is no commission available.
Editorial conclusions and commercial relationships are separate.
Research comes before monetization
STACK’s research process is designed to answer the question being investigated before commercial considerations are applied.
That matters because privacy and security products frequently involve trade-offs that cannot be reduced to a single recommendation.
A product may be a strong fit for one use case and a poor fit for another. A company may have strong evidence in one area and unresolved questions in another.
Affiliate availability should not change those distinctions.
Not every link is an affiliate link
If STACK introduces affiliate links, that does not mean every link on the site will generate revenue.
We may also link directly to:
- provider documentation;
- audit reports;
- corporate records;
- technical resources;
- source repositories;
- app stores;
- regulators;
- independent research;
- other evidence used in an investigation.
These links exist to help readers inspect the underlying evidence or continue their research.
Future commercial relationships
STACK may eventually earn revenue through:
- affiliate commissions;
- advertising;
- sponsorships;
- subscriptions;
- research products;
- other commercial services.
If new revenue models create a material relationship that readers should know about, we will disclose that relationship appropriately.
Any sponsored or paid editorial material, if introduced, should be clearly identified as such and kept distinct from independent research coverage.
Our current position
At present:
STACK does not currently use affiliate links and has not yet applied to join affiliate programs for the products covered on the site.
The publication is being built independently of those relationships.
If that changes, this disclosure will be updated.
The underlying editorial principle will remain the same:
Commercial relationships may support the publication. They do not decide what the evidence says.