Skip to main content

Security report for acaweb.ca

Association of Canadian Advertisers · Media · Canada

High risk. 5 critical or high findings in Network security, Security headers and 2 other checks.

Security score

49/100

Risk levelHigh

0–100, higher is better. How it is calculated

The Association of Canadian Advertisers (ACA) is a well-established non-profit organization founded in 2005, serving the Canadian advertising and marketing community. The ACA provides a broad range of services including confidential consultations, industry resources, training, events, and advocacy to support its members in navigating the complex marketing landscape. The website reflects a mature market position with a medium-sized membership base and strong industry partnerships. Technically, the ACA website is built on WordPress with a modern technology stack including jQuery, GSAP, Masonry, and integrations with HubSpot and Informz for marketing and analytics. The site demonstrates good performance, mobile optimization, accessibility, and SEO practices, supported by Yoast SEO plugin and Google Tag Manager. From a security perspective, the site enforces HTTPS, uses domain transfer and update prohibitions, and implements a comprehensive cookie consent mechanism aligned with GDPR requirements. However, there is room for improvement by enabling DNSSEC and adding security headers such as Content-Security-Policy and Strict-Transport-Security. No critical vulnerabilities or exposed sensitive data were detected. Overall, the ACA website presents a low-risk profile with high trustworthiness, professional content, and compliance with privacy regulations. The domain registration data corroborates the legitimacy and long-standing presence of the organization. Strategic recommendations include enhancing DNS security, publishing a formal security policy, and considering a vulnerability disclosure program to further strengthen security posture.

Scanned

NIS2 and GDPR posture

GDPR outside view
95/ 100 · Low
Checks completed
7of 7

NIS2 Art. 21(2)

  1. (a) Risk analysis and security policies: Not visible from outside
  2. (b) Incident handling: One indicator
  3. (c) Business continuity, backups and crisis management: Not visible from outside
  4. (d) Supply chain security: Not visible from outside
  5. (e) Secure acquisition, development and maintenance, including vulnerability handling: Partly checked
  6. (f) Assessing the effectiveness of security measures: Not visible from outside
  7. (g) Cyber hygiene and security training: Not visible from outside
  8. (h) Cryptography and encryption: Partly checked
  9. (i) HR security, access control and asset management: One indicator
  10. (j) Multi-factor authentication and secured communications: Not visible from outside

This scan rated NIS2 with an earlier keyword method that is no longer shown; rescan for the per-article view. Risk management, continuity, supply chain, training, MFA, management oversight (Art. 20) and incident reporting (Art. 23) need internal evidence, and Guard cannot tell whether NIS2 applies to this organisation.

GDPR is indicative only, based on publicly visible signals: Articles 7, 12, 13 and 32 of Regulation (EU) 2016/679 and Article 5(3) of the ePrivacy Directive. Not a certification or legal assessment.

Priority findings

5 findings rated critical or high. Fix these first.

  1. Network security

    Services reachable from the internet are the first thing attackers probe. Anything open that does not need to be should be closed.

    • Critical

      Critical Service Exposed: MySQL

      Port 3306 (MySQL) is publicly accessible - MySQL - Database server

      What to do: Immediately restrict access to MySQL using firewall or VPN

      • NIS2 21(2)(e)
      • IR 2024/2690 6.7.2(f): Implementing Regulation (EU) 2024/2690, Annex point 6.7.2(f): Network security
      • NIST CM-7: NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5 CM-7: Least Functionality
      • NIST SC-7: NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5 SC-7: Boundary Protection
    • High

      High-Risk Service Exposed: FTP

      Port 21 (FTP) is publicly accessible - FTP - Often unencrypted file transfer

      What to do: Consider restricting access to FTP or implementing strong authentication

      • NIS2 21(2)(e)
      • IR 2024/2690 6.7.2(f): Implementing Regulation (EU) 2024/2690, Annex point 6.7.2(f): Network security
      • NIST CM-7: NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5 CM-7: Least Functionality
      • NIST SC-7: NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5 SC-7: Boundary Protection

  2. Security headers

    Security headers are instructions your web server sends to every visitor’s browser. Missing ones leave visitors more exposed to attacks such as clickjacking and injected scripts.

    • High

      Missing Content-Security-Policy header

      Controls resources the browser is allowed to load

      What to do: Implement a Content-Security-Policy appropriate for your application

      • ASVS V3.4.3
      • OWASP Secure Headers: OWASP Secure Headers Project recommends Content-Security-Policy: default-src 'self'; form-action 'self'; base-uri 'self'; object-src 'none';…

  3. SSL/TLS

    TLS encrypts the connection and proves the site is really yours. Weak or expiring certificates trigger browser warnings and put traffic at risk.

    • High

      Weak Protocols Supported

      Server supports weak protocols: TLSv1.1

      What to do: Disable TLS 1.0, TLS 1.1, and all SSL versions

      • CWE-327
      • OWASP A04:2025
      • ASVS V12.1.1

  4. DNS health

    DNS sends visitors and email to the right servers. Misconfigured records can cause outages or let someone redirect your traffic.

    • High

      Domain Expires Soon

      Domain expires in 27 days

      What to do: Renew domain registration before expiration

Need hands-on remediation? Email guard@offseq.com

Keep watching acaweb.ca

This scan found 24 issues across 6 checks. Monitoring re-runs those checks daily, emails you when something material changes and records each fix, so you can show progress.

Daily monitoring

Recommended

€25per month

  • TLS certificates and expiry
  • DNS records
  • SPF, DKIM and DMARC
  • Security headers
  • GDPR and NIS2 posture
  • Exposed services
  • Third-party trackers
  • Security score drift

Email alerts on material changes and an exportable JSON history of every change.

Billed monthly to your card. Cancel anytime. The full timeline opens with your unlock code.

Full report

€39.90one-time

  • The complete analysis as a PDF you can cite
  • Email delivery with an unlock code
  • Lifetime access to this report

Prices incl. 21% VAT. Secure checkout by Mollie; sold by SEQ SIA, Latvia.

Results by check

Each check with its score, findings and the evidence it collected.

How this score is calculated

The security score runs 0–100, higher is better. It is the plain average of the security checks that completed in this scan, each counted equally. A check that could not run is left out: it counts neither as a pass nor as a fail.

Counted in this score

SSL/TLS
62
Security headers
60
Email security
70
DNS health
60
Network security
0
GDPR outside view
95
Average
58
After the cap
49

Not counted

  • NIS2 outside view: Re-weights evidence from the TLS, email, DNS, network and hygiene checks, so counting it would count that evidence twice. Shown on its own.
  • OffSeq Observations: An AI reading of the site, useful context but not reproducible evidence. Shown on its own.

Findings that cap the score at 49

Each of these is serious on its own, so while any is present the site cannot rate better than high risk, however good the other checks are.

  • The certificate is not trusted by browsers
  • The website is not served over HTTPS
  • A database, remote desktop, file-sharing or Telnet service is reachable from the internet · found on this site
  • The page loads a script from a compromised source
  • The domain registration has expired
  • SPF authorises every server to send mail as the domain

Partial scans

When the site blocks Guard or most checks cannot run, the score covers only the checks that ran (usually DNS and email), is capped at 75 and is shown as partial, without a risk level.

Risk levels

  • Critical0–25
  • High26–49
  • Medium50–75
  • Low76–100

Technical appendix

Business context, site observations and technical notes gathered during the scan, and the standards behind each reference.

Business context

Business profile

The ACA operates as a membership-based association focused on the media and advertising sector in Canada. Its competitive advantage lies in its comprehensive suite of services tailored to advertisers, including confidential consultations, strategic leadership, and educational events. Revenue streams likely include membership fees, event registrations, and resource subscriptions. The target customer segments are Canadian advertisers and marketing professionals seeking industry insights and advocacy. The organization maintains a robust partnership ecosystem with marketing intelligence providers like COMvergence and WARC, enhancing its value proposition. The website content and member testimonials indicate a strong reputation and influence within the Canadian marketing community.

Security posture

The ACA website exhibits a mature security posture with mandatory HTTPS, domain status protections, and a GDPR-compliant cookie consent mechanism. The absence of DNSSEC and security headers represents moderate gaps that could be exploited in DNS spoofing or clickjacking attacks. No incident response or security policy pages were found, which could limit transparency and preparedness in case of security events. The use of reputable third-party analytics and marketing tools is balanced by user consent controls. Overall, the security culture appears proactive but could benefit from formalized policies and enhanced technical controls.

Recommendations

  1. Enable DNSSEC to protect against DNS spoofing and enhance domain security.
  2. Implement security headers such as Content-Security-Policy, X-Frame-Options, and Strict-Transport-Security to mitigate common web attacks.
  3. Publish a dedicated security policy and incident response information to improve transparency and preparedness.
  4. Consider establishing a vulnerability disclosure program or security.txt file to encourage responsible reporting of security issues.
  5. Regularly audit third-party scripts and plugins to ensure no vulnerable libraries are in use and maintain secure form handling.

Contact details published on the site

Addresses
Legal name
Association of Canadian Advertisers
Site observations

Automated reading of the public site. Ratings are indicative.

Business

Company
Association of Canadian Advertisers
Description
Association of Canadian Advertisers is a non-profit organization serving Canadian advertisers with resources, advocacy, training, and industry leadership to help navigate the marketing and advertising landscape.
Key services
Confidential consultations, Resources and publications, Training and events, Advocacy and leadership, Membership services
Content quality
excellent
Branding
consistent

Technology

Stack
WordPress, jQuery, GSAP, Masonry, Google Tag Manager, HubSpot, Informz tracking, Cookie Law Info plugin
Frameworks
Yoast SEO
Platforms
WordPress CMS
Performance
moderate
Mobile
good
Accessibility
good
SEO
good

Security

Observed score
85/100
Good practices seen
  • HTTPS enforced
  • ClientTransferProhibited and clientUpdateProhibited domain status
  • Cookie consent banner with user controls
  • No exposed sensitive data in HTML

Analytics and tracking

Services
Google Analytics, HubSpot Analytics, Informz
Tracking level
moderate
Privacy practices
good

Advertising

Tracking pixels
HubSpot Analytics, Informz tracking
Marketing tools
HubSpot, Informz
Transparency
good

Site quality

Design
excellent
User experience
excellent
Content relevance
excellent
Navigation
excellent
Professionalism
excellent
Trustworthiness
high

Key observations

  1. Website is a professional association site with extensive resources and member services.
  2. Strong branding and consistent messaging throughout the site.
  3. Good use of modern web technologies and SEO best practices.
  4. Comprehensive cookie consent mechanism implemented.
  5. No signs of malicious or suspicious activity detected.
  6. WHOIS data supports legitimacy and long-term operation.
Technical notes

Notes

The ACA website is powered by WordPress CMS with a modern front-end stack including jQuery, GSAP for animations, and Masonry for layout management. SEO is enhanced via Yoast SEO plugin, and analytics are integrated through Google Analytics, HubSpot, and Informz tracking. The site uses external resources from trusted CDNs and fonts.googleapis.com. Performance is moderate with room for optimization, but mobile responsiveness and accessibility are well addressed. Hosting appears stable with Tucows as registrar and Hover DNS. The site uses cookie consent plugins compliant with GDPR, reflecting good privacy practices. Technical debt is minimal, but security enhancements like DNSSEC and security headers are recommended to reduce risk.
Standards and sources

Reference chips under each finding point to the standard, regulation or specification the finding relates to. They are taken from the official datasets below and mapped conservatively: a finding with no defensible link shows none. NIS2 and GDPR references mark where a finding is relevant evidence, not a compliance verdict. Implementing Regulation (EU) 2024/2690 binds digital infrastructure and digital service providers; for other entities it is the most detailed public reading of the Article 21 measures. WCAG, EN 301 549, European Accessibility Act and Web Accessibility Directive references name the requirement an automated accessibility rule relates to; they are not a conformance verdict.

Retrieved 2026-10-25

Reviews of this site

Share your experience with acaweb.ca. Every review is verified by email and published after moderation.

Overall rating
Select a rating
4000 characters remaining

We’ll email you to confirm your review and keep your details private.

Community rating

No published reviews yet. Be the first to review acaweb.ca.

Feedback on this report

Rate this report, add an optional comment, and tell us if you want a security specialist to follow up.

Overall report quality
Select a rating
2000 characters remaining

We only use your feedback to improve Guard reports. Contact details are never shared.