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Security report for bsd.network

BSD Network · Technology · N/a

Medium risk. 2 critical or high findings in GDPR outside view.

Security score

72/100

Risk levelMedium

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

BSD Network operates a niche Mastodon instance focused on the *BSD community and adjacent users. The platform emphasizes a supportive, inclusive, and well-moderated social environment, currently operating in invite-only mode due to capacity constraints. The website provides clear information about its community goals, code of conduct, and administrative contacts, fostering trust and transparency within its user base. Technically, the site leverages Mastodon software with modern web technologies, including HTTPS and CSRF protections, ensuring a secure user experience. However, some security best practices such as explicit security headers and cookie consent mechanisms are absent, representing areas for improvement. Overall, the platform presents a trustworthy and community-oriented social network with a strong focus on privacy and moderation.

Scanned

NIS2 and GDPR posture

GDPR outside view
53/ 100 · Medium
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

2 findings rated critical or high. Fix these first.

  1. GDPR outside view

    These are the privacy signals visitors and data protection authorities look for under GDPR.

    • High

      No Cookie Policy found

      GDPR requires clear information about cookie usage

      What to do: Add a dedicated cookie policy explaining cookie usage and purposes

    • High

      No Cookie Consent Banner found

      GDPR requires explicit consent for non-essential cookies

      What to do: Implement a cookie consent banner that appears on first visit

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  • TLS certificates and expiry
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  • Security headers
  • GDPR and NIS2 posture
  • Exposed services
  • Third-party trackers
  • Security score drift

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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
95
Security headers
85
Email security
73
DNS health
85
Network security
40
GDPR outside view
53
Average
72

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

Technical appendix

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

Business context

Business profile

BSD Network targets a specialized segment of Mastodon users interested in *BSD and related communities. Its invite-only model and emphasis on social capacity and moderation differentiate it from larger, open Mastodon instances. The business model is community-driven rather than commercial, with no evident monetization or advertising. The platform's partnerships with Mastodon ecosystem sites and open-source repositories indicate alignment with open-source and decentralized social networking principles. Growth is likely organic and community-based, with a focus on maintaining quality and inclusivity rather than scale. The presence of an active admin and clear communication channels supports a strong community management approach.

Security posture

The website demonstrates a solid security posture with HTTPS enforced and CSRF tokens implemented in forms. The disabled registration form prevents abuse and spam. However, the absence of explicit security headers such as Content Security Policy (CSP), HTTP Strict Transport Security (HSTS), and X-Frame-Options reduces defense-in-depth. No vulnerabilities or exposed sensitive data were detected in the content. Incident response contact is provided via admin email, but no formal security policy or vulnerability disclosure program is published. The site would benefit from enhanced security headers, a published security policy, and cookie consent mechanisms to improve compliance and user trust.

Recommendations

  1. Implement and enforce security headers including CSP, HSTS, and X-Frame-Options to strengthen security posture.
  2. Publish a formal security policy and vulnerability disclosure program to enhance transparency and incident response readiness.
  3. Add a visible cookie policy and consent mechanism to improve privacy compliance and user trust.
  4. Consider providing more detailed business information and community guidelines to reinforce credibility.
  5. Regularly audit third-party scripts and dependencies to ensure no vulnerable libraries are included.
Site observations

Automated reading of the public site. Ratings are indicative.

Business

Company
BSD Network
Description
bsd.network is a *BSD-adjacent Mastodon Instance. It is a privately-run, heavily moderated social platform focused on inclusivity and kindness, hosting a community of real-life friends and family.
Key services
Mastodon social networking, Community moderation, Invite-only membership
Content quality
good
Branding
consistent

Technology

Stack
Mastodon, JavaScript, SVG graphics
Frameworks
Mastodon
Platforms
Web, Mobile apps (via external links)
Performance
moderate
Mobile
good
Accessibility
good
SEO
good

Security

Observed score
85/100
Good practices seen
  • HTTPS enforced
  • CSRF tokens in forms
  • Disabled registration form to prevent abuse

Analytics and tracking

Tracking level
minimal
Privacy practices
basic

Advertising

Transparency
poor

Site quality

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

Key observations

  1. Website is an invite-only Mastodon instance focused on *BSD community adjacency.
  2. Registration is disabled due to capacity and social moderation goals.
  3. Admin contact email is provided for invite requests.
  4. No phone numbers or physical addresses found.
  5. No cookie policy or consent mechanism detected.
  6. No explicit security headers detected in HTML content.
  7. Uses HTTPS with valid SSL.
  8. No analytics or tracking scripts detected.
  9. External links primarily to Mastodon ecosystem and source code repositories.
  10. No suspicious or malicious content detected.
Technical notes

Notes

The website is built on the Mastodon platform, likely using Ruby on Rails backend and modern JavaScript frontend. It uses SVG for logos and icons, and external media hosting via media.bsd.network CDN. The site is mobile-optimized and accessible with proper meta tags and responsive design. Performance is moderate with no evident blocking scripts or heavy resources. The lack of analytics or tracking scripts indicates a privacy-conscious approach. Hosting appears to be with Identity Digital or related providers, consistent with the domain's TLD and WHOIS information. Technical debt appears low, but security header implementation and cookie management could be improved.
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

Earlier scans of this domain

  1. 71/100Medium24 findingsView report
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