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Security report for cardano.org

Cardano Foundation · Technology · United Kingdom

Medium risk. 5 critical or high findings in GDPR outside view, SSL/TLS and 1 other check.

Security score

72/100

Risk levelMedium

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

Cardano.org represents the official website of the Cardano blockchain platform, a leading proof-of-stake blockchain founded on peer-reviewed research. The platform targets changemakers, innovators, and developers aiming to build decentralized applications and governance systems with a focus on security, sustainability, and scalability. The website is professionally designed, content-rich, and provides extensive resources for learning, community engagement, and development. Technically, the site uses modern frameworks such as Docusaurus and integrates Google Analytics and Tag Manager for tracking. Security posture is strong with HTTPS enforced and domain protections in place, though DNSSEC is not enabled and security headers are not visibly configured. Privacy compliance is well addressed with clear privacy and terms policies, though no explicit cookie consent mechanism was detected. Overall, the site demonstrates high business credibility and technical maturity.

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

5 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

  2. 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
    • High

      Weak SSL Key Length

      SSL certificate uses 256-bit key, which is considered weak

      What to do: Use at least 2048-bit RSA or 256-bit ECC key

      • CWE-326
      • OWASP A04:2025
      • Mozilla TLS: Mozilla Server Side TLS 6.0 intermediate: rsa_key_size 2048

  3. DNS health

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

    • High

      Unregistered MX Record

      MX record points to unregistered domain: rkz6s4pvr76mqsxkcjun7hxpo52y5v4cuxpxj4fxahazjnsl4e2q.mx-verification.google.com

      What to do: Remove or fix MX record pointing to unregistered domain

      • RFC 5321 §5.1
      • NIS2 21(2)(i)
      • IR 2024/2690 12.4: Implementing Regulation (EU) 2024/2690, Annex point 12.4: Asset inventory
      • NIST CM-8: NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5 CM-8: System Component Inventory

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

Keep watching cardano.org

This scan found 21 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.

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Full report

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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
52
Security headers
70
Email security
85
DNS health
70
Network security
100
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

Cardano operates as a major player in the blockchain technology sector, leveraging a unique business model based on open-source, peer-reviewed research and decentralized governance. Its ecosystem is supported by multiple independent entities including the Cardano Foundation, EMURGO, and Input Output, which collectively drive adoption, development, and community growth. The platform's competitive advantage lies in its sustainability focus and scientific approach to blockchain design. Revenue streams likely include staking services, partnerships, and ecosystem development. The target audience spans developers, enterprises, and individual users interested in blockchain innovation. The partnership ecosystem is robust, with clear collaboration among core entities. Strategic observations highlight Cardano's positioning as a trusted and mature blockchain platform with a strong community and research foundation.

Security posture

The website exhibits a mature security posture with HTTPS enforced and domain registration protections such as clientDeleteProhibited status. However, the absence of DNSSEC and security headers like Content-Security-Policy and Strict-Transport-Security represents areas for improvement. No exposed sensitive data or vulnerabilities were detected in the content. Privacy policies are comprehensive and GDPR compliant, but incident response and vulnerability disclosure information are not publicly available. The site uses Google Analytics and Tag Manager, indicating moderate user tracking. Overall, the security maturity is good but could be enhanced by implementing additional security headers and DNSSEC, and by publishing explicit security policies and incident response contacts.

Recommendations

  1. Enable DNSSEC to enhance DNS security and prevent spoofing.
  2. Implement security headers such as Content-Security-Policy, X-Frame-Options, and Strict-Transport-Security to mitigate common web vulnerabilities.
  3. Publish a dedicated security policy and incident response contact information to improve transparency and readiness.
  4. Add a cookie consent mechanism to comply fully with privacy regulations and enhance user trust.
  5. Regularly audit third-party scripts and tracking tools to minimize privacy risks and improve performance.
Site observations

Automated reading of the public site. Ratings are indicative.

Business

Company
Cardano Foundation
Description
Cardano is a blockchain platform for changemakers, innovators, and visionaries, with tools and technologies to create possibility and positive global change. It is a proof-of-stake blockchain platform founded on peer-reviewed research, designed to provide security, sustainability, and decentralization for applications, systems, and societies.
Key services
Blockchain platform, Proof-of-stake protocol (Ouroboros), Decentralized applications, Stake pool delegation, Governance participation
Content quality
excellent
Branding
consistent

Technology

Stack
JavaScript, React, Docusaurus v3.7.0, Google Tag Manager, Google Analytics
Frameworks
Docusaurus
Performance
fast
Mobile
excellent
Accessibility
good
SEO
good

Security

Observed score
85/100
Good practices seen
  • HTTPS enabled
  • ClientDeleteProhibited, clientTransferProhibited, clientUpdateProhibited domain statuses

Analytics and tracking

Services
Google Analytics, Google Tag Manager
Tracking level
moderate
Privacy practices
good

Advertising

Transparency
basic

Site quality

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

Key observations

  1. Website is professionally designed and well-structured.
  2. Content is comprehensive and focused on blockchain technology and community.
  3. No signs of malicious or suspicious activity.
  4. Strong presence of social media and community engagement links.
  5. No explicit contact emails or phone numbers publicly listed; contact via form.
  6. No DNSSEC enabled, which is a minor security gap.
  7. No visible security.txt or vulnerability disclosure page.
Technical notes

Notes

The website is built using the Docusaurus framework, leveraging React and modern JavaScript technologies. It is hosted with Amazon Registrar and uses AWS DNS servers. Performance is fast with deferred JavaScript loading and optimized CSS. The site is mobile-optimized and accessible with clear navigation and structured content. SEO is well addressed with proper meta tags and Open Graph data. The technical infrastructure is modern and well-maintained, though enabling DNSSEC and adding security headers would further strengthen the platform. The use of Google Analytics and Tag Manager indicates standard analytics practices. Overall, the technical implementation supports a high-quality user experience and robust platform presence.
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

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