Cloaked vs. Aura 2026: More Removal or More Monitoring?

If your goal is scrubbing your personal info off data broker sites, Cloaked is the stronger choice. But Aura is the better buy if you want identity and financial monitoring baked in.

Both digital privacy services go well beyond basic data removal and are easy to use. Cloaked pairs its broker cleanup with phone and email aliases, scam call protection, a VPN, and a password manager. It takes a prevention-first approach that keeps companies from getting your real info in the first place. Similarly, Aura bundles data removal with identity, credit, and financial monitoring, plus antivirus, a password manager, ad blocker, and VPN.

The gap comes down to coverage and price: Cloaked monitors 350+ brokers, allows for manual scans with automation packs, and covers up to four people on a family plan. But it's pricier than most data removal services. Meanwhile, Aura monitors 200+ brokers, covers up to 2 people, and includes a complete online security suite for less than Cloaked.

Here's how Cloaked and Aura compare on value, features, security, and user experience.

Cloaked vs. Aura at a glance

• Cloaked: Best for extensive data broker removal
• Aura: Best for all-in-one identity monitoring

		Our Pick
Star rating	4.7 AllAboutCookies writers and editors score products based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	4.7 AllAboutCookies writers and editors score products based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.
Price	From $9.99/mo	From $7.00/mo
# of site removals	350+ brokers and 650+ other sites	200+ brokers
Privacy reports	Yes — as data is removed
Recurring removals
Custom removal requests
Encryption	End-to-end encryption (protocol not specified)	AES-256, HTTPS, PGP
Supported countries	USA, Canada	USA
Extras	Digital aliases, spam call protection, VPN (mobile only), password manager, and identity theft insurance	Identity theft insurance, Google search cleanup, digital account cleanup, registry with national do-not-call list, extensive identity and financial monitoring, antivirus, VPN, password manager, and sensitive files vault
Learn more	Get Cloaked Read Cloaked Review	Get Aura Data Removal Read Aura Data Removal Review

Cloaked pros and cons

Cloaked casts the widest net of the two, monitoring 350+ data brokers and people-search sites, plus 650+ more websites through its automations feature. It automatically rescans every 30 days, though the DIY automations allow for repeated scans. In our testing, a free phone-number scan surfaced our name, age, current and past addresses, and even the first three digits of our SSN, and Cloaked cleared 16 records from three broker sites within a couple of days.

Beyond removal, Cloaked leans into prevention: phone and email aliases, scam call protection, a mobile VPN, and a password manager all work to keep companies from getting your real details in the first place. Pricing is per user, so every plan gets identical coverage, and the Family plan covers up to four. Like Aura, it's independently certified (ISO 27001, SOC 2 Type II, PCI DSS), and adds an ISO 27701 privacy certification on top.

The trade-offs: Cloaked runs pricier than Aura, offers no custom removals, and has no free trial or clearly stated money-back guarantee. Its mobile apps were also glitchy in testing. Email Guard failed to load, and the iOS cancellation flow threw an error.

Aura Data Removal pros and cons

Aura folds data removal into a full identity-protection suite, and every plan gets the same coverage: 200+ data brokers, people-search sites, junk-mailers, and Google search results. It scans daily and removes data automatically, with assisted options for brokers it can't reach on its own.

Where Aura pulls ahead is everything around removal: dark web monitoring, Google Search Cleanup, Digital Account Cleanup, antivirus, a VPN, and a password manager, with identity, credit, and financial monitoring on the higher tiers. In testing, setup was quick, the dashboard was easy to navigate, and support replied in about two minutes. Annual plans come with a 14-day free trial and a 60-day money-back guarantee.

The catch is that removal isn't Aura's specialty. It covers fewer sites than dedicated services, offers no custom removals, no privacy reports, and no true family plan (only Ultimate Plus covers two adults). And because it's a bundle, it's best value only if you'll actually use the extras.

Which data removal service is the better value?

Both Aura and Cloaked provide digital privacy suites, but Aura is the better value. Although Cloaked has more extensive data broker removal, Aura offers robust identity and credit monitoring. 

		Our Pick
Price range	$9.99-$29.99/mo	$7.00–$20.00/mo
Best value plan	Individual for $9.99/mo	Premium for $7.00/mo
Family plan	Family covers up to 4 adults for $24.99/mo	Ultimate Plus covers 2 adults for $15.00/mo
Money-back guarantee		Yes — 60 days, annual plans only
Learn more	Get Cloaked Read Cloaked Review	Get Aura Data Removal Read Aura Data Removal Review

Cloaked plans

Cloaked plans are easy to understand. All plans have the exact same features, and the only difference is how many people are on a plan.

• Individual: Covers 1 person and monitors 350+ data brokers and people-search sites, plus 650+ other sites. It offers dark web monitoring, unlimited phone and email aliases, and $1M identity theft insurance. It also includes security features like a password manager, VPN, and spam call protection.
• Couple: Everything in Individual, but it covers you and a plus 1.
• Family: Covers you and three more family members and includes all features.

Cloaked is a commitment from the get-go. There's no free trial or money-back guarantee. You'll need to invest first if you want to try out Cloaked.

Aura Data Removal plans

Aura data removal plans only offer coverage to individuals or couples. It's more affordable or around the same price as Cloaked. But you get way more monitoring for identity theft, financial transactions, and credit reports.

• Premium: Data removal from 200+ data broker sites for 1 adult. It features dark web monitoring, identity theft protection alerts, and several digital security tools, like a VPN, password manager, ad blocker, sensitive files vault, and antivirus protection. 
• Ultimate: Includes all the software and services of the Premium plan but adds up to $1M in identity theft insurance and advanced monitoring, including identity verification monitoring, home title & address monitoring, and criminal & court records monitoring. The Ultimate plan also includes inclusion of financial fraud protection, which encompasses 3-bureau credit monitoring, monthly credit scores, easy credit lock with Experian, and monitoring of bank accounts and financial transactions for suspicious activity. 
• Ultimate Plus: Designed for 2 adults and has all the features of the Ultimate plan, including up to $1M in identity theft insurance for each adult.

A 60-day money-back guarantee is available only on annual plans. For more information on Aura Family plans that include parental controls and child Social Security monitoring, check out our Aura identity theft review.

Which data removal service has the better features?

Although Aura offers more features for identity and financial monitoring, which go beyond data broker sites, Cloaked has more extensive data removal services.

	Our Pick
Free scan		Yes*
Automated data removal
Manual data removal
# of site removals	350+ data brokers and 650+ other sites	200+
How often is data rechecked?	Every 30 days	Daily
Custom removal requests
Privacy reports	Yes — as data is removed
Real-time alerts
Marketing list removal
Social media account monitoring
Dark web monitoring
Extras	Digital aliases, spam call protection, VPN (mobile only), password manager, and identity theft insurance	Identity theft insurance, Google search cleanup, digital account cleanup, registry with national do-not-call list, extensive identity and financial monitoring, antivirus, VPN, password manager, ad blocker, and sensitive files vault, email masking
Learn more	Get Cloaked Read Cloaked Review	Get Aura Data Removal Read Aura Data Removal Review

Aura and Cloaked are packed with features, offering digital privacy tools you typically won't find with standalone data removal services. Both bundle a password manager and VPN, while Aura goes a step further to include an ad blocker and antivirus software for total online security. However, neither offers the depth of coverage of a standalone data removal service like Incogni, which includes custom removals.

But what's noteworthy is how each provider actively protects your information. Cloaked focuses on prevention. It helps you create aliases with fake email addresses, so companies never get your real data in the first place.

Meanwhile, Aura leans more toward digital cleanup and identity protection. It has extensive identity monitoring to spot red flags that someone is using your identity.

While both Cloaked and Aura offer complete digital privacy suites, Cloaked covers more data broker sites and stops your personal data from getting collected with digital aliases.

But we've seen Aura's broker coverage jump from a mere 30 to hundreds within 6 months, so we know the company actively works to expand its automated removals. 

Which data removal service is more secure?

Aura edges out Cloaked when it comes to encryption. AES-256 encryption is considered a standard protocol. Aura uses AES-256 alongside HTTPS and PGP. Meanwhile, Cloaked uses end-to-end encryption, but it doesn't specify which protocol.

		Our Pick
Encryption	End-to-end encryption (Protocol not specified)	AES-256, HTTPS, PGP
Collects data	Minimal	Minimal
Shares data with third parties	Minimal	Minimal
Learn more	Get Cloaked Read Cloaked Review	Get Aura Data Removal Read Aura Data Removal Review

When it comes to data collection and sharing, both Cloaked and Aura have similar policies. They only collect data for operational purposes. Neither shares nor sells your data to third parties.

Both services back their security claims with independent audits: Cloaked and Aura each hold ISO 27001, SOC 2 Type II, and PCI DSS certifications. Cloaked goes one step further with an ISO 27701 privacy certification, giving it a slight edge on privacy-specific validation.

Which data removal service has the better user experience?

Based on our hands-on testing, Aura offers the better user experience.

		Our Pick
Supported countries	USA, Canada	USA
Android
iOS
24/7 customer support
Customer support options	Chatbot, live chat, email, phone, help center	Email, phone, online guides, live chat (weekdays only)
Trustpilot score	3.8	4.2
Learn more	Get Cloaked Read Cloaked Review	Get Aura Data Removal Read Aura Data Removal Review

Cloaked has a chatbot and live chat, which makes it easy to contact them straight from the app or website. Aura doesn't have a 24/7 chat feature. Email is slightly more work, but Aura customer support responded in 2 minutes.

From a user-experience standpoint, Aura is better for more people because it's totally hands-off once you input your information. Cloaked, on the other hand, can require extra work from the user to complete the automation packs and set up the Call Guard and other features. Aura is more of a "set-and-forget" identity monitoring service.

Top data removal service alternatives

While Cloaked and Aura offer data removal services, it's not their main feature. Cloaked shines at masking your identity with alias email addresses and phone numbers. Aura is primarily an identity monitoring and theft protection service.

Incogni and DeleteMe are better options for data removal. They work exclusively in this service and are great options for data privacy minimalists who don't want extra frills.

Learn more about the best data removal services we've tested and ranked.

Cloaked vs. Aura Data Removal: Which is better?

Cloaked is better for more extensive and routine data removal, but Aura offers more value and is the better service overall.

		Our Pick
Value
Features
Security
User experience
Learn more	Get Cloaked Read Cloaked Review	Get Aura Data Removal Read Aura Data Removal Review

Aura Data Removal is the better pick for most people. Cloaked casts the wider net across data broker sites, but Aura wins where it counts for everyday use: value, security, and usability. It bundles data removal with identity, credit, and financial monitoring, rescans daily, and backs everything with a 14-day free trial and a 60-day money-back guarantee, so you can try it risk-free. Cloaked, by comparison, costs more, has no trial or clearly stated refund policy, and its mobile apps were glitchy in our testing.

Cloaked still earns its place: if raw broker coverage is your top priority or you need a family plan for up to four people, it removes your data from more sites and leans hard into prevention with phone and email aliases. But for the average person who wants solid data removal plus a full security and identity-monitoring suite that mostly runs itself, Aura delivers more protection for less, which makes it our overall winner.

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