Ascent is a large UK-based technology consulting firm specializing in data, AI, software engineering, and cloud services. The company serves a broad range of industries including insurance, pharma, financial services, and retail, with a strong emphasis on regulated sectors. Their market position is supported by over 530 employees and a portfolio of 2000+ projects across 20+ countries, working with globally recognized brands. Technically, the website leverages modern frameworks such as Bootstrap, Vue.js, and integrates with HubSpot and Google Tag Manager, indicating a mature digital infrastructure. The site is well-optimized for mobile and accessibility, with fast performance and good SEO practices. Security posture is solid with HTTPS and no exposed sensitive data, though there is room for improvement in security headers and incident response disclosures. Privacy compliance is partial, with a privacy policy present but lacking cookie consent mechanisms. Overall, the website reflects a professional and trustworthy business with strong technical and market credentials.
Scanned ·
NIS2 and GDPR posture
GDPR outside view
43/ 100 · High
Checks completed
7of 7
NIS2 Art. 21(2)
a(a) Risk analysis and security policies: Not visible from outside
b(b) Incident handling: One indicator
c(c) Business continuity, backups and crisis management: Not visible from outside
d(d) Supply chain security: Not visible from outside
e(e) Secure acquisition, development and maintenance, including vulnerability handling: Partly checked
f(f) Assessing the effectiveness of security measures: Not visible from outside
g(g) Cyber hygiene and security training: Not visible from outside
h(h) Cryptography and encryption: Partly checked
i(i) HR security, access control and asset management: One indicator
j(j) Multi-factor authentication and secured communications: Not visible from outside
Partly checked
One indicator
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
6 findings rated critical or high. Fix these first.
GDPR outside view
These are the privacy signals visitors and data protection authorities look for under GDPR.
Critical
No HTTPS encryption
GDPR requires appropriate security measures for personal data
What to do: Implement SSL/TLS certificate for HTTPS
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 X-Frame-Options header
Prevents clickjacking attacks
What to do: Add "X-Frame-Options: DENY" or "X-Frame-Options: SAMEORIGIN"
This scan found 16 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
0
Security headers
50
Email security
62
DNS health
85
Network security
100
GDPR outside view
43
Average
57
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
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
Breach exposure
Leaked credentials and lookalike domains from OffSeq Breach. The counts are free; the detailed lists are paid add-ons.
Dark web exposure
Add-on
Leaked records that mention ascent.software, from OffSeq Breach.
No leaked records found
Breach holds no records for ascent.software right now. New leaks arrive continuously, so monitoring on Breach alerts you if that changes.
Business context, site observations and technical notes gathered during the scan, and the standards behind each reference.
Business context
Business profile
Ascent operates as a consulting and services provider focusing on digital transformation through data, AI, and cloud technologies. Their competitive advantage lies in deep domain expertise across multiple regulated industries and strong partnerships, notably with Microsoft. The business model centers on delivering tailored solutions including innovation advisory, software engineering, and cloud migration. Revenue streams likely include consulting fees, managed services, and software development projects. The target customers are enterprises and large organizations seeking advanced digital capabilities. Growth indicators include a large employee base, extensive project history, and multiple Microsoft accreditations. The partnership ecosystem includes strategic alliances with technology leaders, enhancing credibility and market reach.
Security posture
The website demonstrates a mature security posture with mandatory HTTPS and use of integrity attributes on scripts. However, the absence of explicit security headers such as Content Security Policy, HSTS, and X-Frame-Options suggests opportunities for enhancement. No vulnerabilities or exposed sensitive data were detected in the HTML content. Incident response and security policies are not publicly disclosed, which could be improved to increase transparency and readiness. Privacy compliance is partial; while a privacy policy is present and GDPR compliance is indicated, cookie consent mechanisms are missing. Overall, the security maturity is good but could benefit from formalized policies and enhanced header configurations.
Recommendations
Implement and publish a cookie consent banner to comply with GDPR and ePrivacy regulations.
Add security headers including Content Security Policy (CSP), HTTP Strict Transport Security (HSTS), and X-Frame-Options to strengthen security posture.
Publish incident response and security policies to improve transparency and preparedness.
Include a vulnerability disclosure policy or security.txt file to facilitate responsible reporting.
Enhance privacy compliance by detailing data retention policies and providing clear user data rights information.
Automated reading of the public site. Ratings are indicative.
Business
Company
Ascent
Description
We help you connect data, AI, software and cloud to drive extraordinary outcomes for your business. We are a design-led data, software & cloud business that specialises in AI & advanced analytics.
Key services
Data & AI Strategy, Governance & Compliance, Change & Capability, Legacy Modernisation, UX Design, Software Engineering, Cloud Services, Modern Platforms
Content quality
excellent
Branding
consistent
Technology
Stack
Bootstrap 5, Swiper.js, jQuery 3.7.1, Vue.js 2.7.16, Vimeo Player
Frameworks
Bootstrap
Platforms
HubSpot (forms), Google Tag Manager
Performance
fast
Mobile
excellent
Accessibility
good
SEO
good
Security
Observed score
85/100
Good practices seen
HTTPS enforced
Use of modern JS libraries with integrity attributes
No exposed sensitive data in HTML
Analytics and tracking
Services
Google Tag Manager
Tracking level
moderate
Privacy practices
basic
Advertising
Marketing tools
HubSpot
Transparency
basic
Site quality
Design
excellent
User experience
excellent
Content relevance
excellent
Navigation
excellent
Professionalism
excellent
Trustworthiness
high
Key observations
Website is professionally designed and content-rich.
Strong focus on data, AI, software engineering, and cloud services.
Good use of client case studies and partner accreditations.
No explicit privacy cookie banner or terms of service found.
No direct company contact emails or phone numbers visible; contact via forms and links.
Use of modern web technologies and frameworks.
No signs of security blocking or WAF challenges.
Technical notes
Notes
The website is built on a modern technology stack including Bootstrap 5, Vue.js, and jQuery, integrated with HubSpot for forms and Google Tag Manager for analytics. The use of integrity attributes on scripts and asynchronous loading indicates attention to performance and security. Hosting appears to be on a reliable platform, possibly Microsoft Azure, supported by Microsoft partnership badges. The site is mobile-optimized with responsive design and good accessibility features. SEO is well addressed with proper meta tags and Open Graph data. No technical debt or deprecated technologies were observed. Opportunities exist to improve security headers and formalize privacy and security policies.
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.
Reviews of this site
Share your experience with ascent.software. Every review is verified by email and published after moderation.
Community rating
No published reviews yet. Be the first to review ascent.software.