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Security report for carlainproperty.co.uk

Carlain Student Houses · Real Estate · United Kingdom

High risk. 9 critical or high findings in Network security, SSL/TLS and 2 other checks.

Security score

42/100

Risk levelHigh

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

Carlain Student Houses operates as a specialist provider of student accommodation in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, and Oxford. The company focuses on renting quality student houses located near college campuses, targeting students seeking convenient and comfortable living arrangements. Their market position is that of a niche real estate letting agency with a strong local presence and a portfolio of properties tailored to student needs. The website reflects a professional business model centered on property lettings and management services, supported by social media engagement and certifications that enhance trust. Technically, the website employs a moderately modern infrastructure including jQuery, Google Tag Manager, Google Analytics, and Google reCAPTCHA v3 for form security. The CMS appears to be CMS Made Simple, which is a common but somewhat dated platform. The site is mobile-optimized with good navigation and SEO practices, though some technical improvements could be made, such as updating libraries and adding security headers. From a security perspective, the site benefits from HTTPS and anti-bot measures on forms but lacks visible security headers and formal privacy or cookie policies, which are important for GDPR compliance. The absence of WHOIS data and domain registration details is a notable concern, potentially indicating domain registration irregularities. However, the website content and business information are consistent and professional, mitigating some trust concerns. Overall, the site presents a low to moderate risk profile with room for improvement in privacy compliance and security best practices. Strategic recommendations include implementing comprehensive privacy and cookie policies, enhancing security headers, updating technical components, and clarifying domain registration information to strengthen legitimacy and trust.

Scanned

NIS2 and GDPR posture

GDPR outside view
35/ 100 · High
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

9 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.

    • 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. 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. GDPR outside view

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

    • High

      No Privacy Policy found

      GDPR requires a clear and accessible privacy policy

      What to do: Add a comprehensive privacy policy page and link to it prominently

    • 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

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

Keep watching carlainproperty.co.uk

This scan found 27 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.

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Recommended

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  • TLS certificates and expiry
  • DNS records
  • SPF, DKIM and DMARC
  • 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
37
Security headers
35
Email security
55
DNS health
70
Network security
20
GDPR outside view
35
Average
42

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

Carlain Student Houses is positioned as a local specialist in student accommodation lettings, focusing on three key UK locations. Their competitive advantage lies in offering centrally located properties with inclusive amenities such as high-speed internet and contents insurance. The business model is straightforward, generating revenue through property rentals to students. The company maintains active social media channels to engage with its target audience and uses certifications to build credibility. The partnership with Click and Let for tenant services indicates a collaborative ecosystem. Growth indicators include a broad portfolio of properties and active marketing via Instagram feeds and contact forms. The company appears to be a small-sized enterprise with a focused market niche.

Security posture

The website demonstrates a basic to moderate security posture. HTTPS is enforced, and Google reCAPTCHA v3 is implemented on the contact form to mitigate spam and automated abuse. However, the absence of key security headers such as Content-Security-Policy, X-Frame-Options, and X-Content-Type-Options reduces protection against common web attacks. The use of an outdated jQuery version may expose the site to known vulnerabilities. No explicit incident response or vulnerability disclosure policies are present, which limits transparency and preparedness. Privacy and cookie policies are missing, indicating compliance gaps with GDPR and other data protection regulations. Overall, while no critical vulnerabilities are evident, the site would benefit from enhanced security controls and formalized policies.

Recommendations

  1. Implement comprehensive privacy and cookie policies with explicit user consent mechanisms to ensure GDPR compliance.
  2. Add security headers such as Content-Security-Policy, X-Frame-Options, and X-Content-Type-Options to improve web security posture.
  3. Update JavaScript libraries, particularly jQuery, to the latest secure versions to mitigate known vulnerabilities.
  4. Establish and publish a vulnerability disclosure policy or security.txt file to enhance transparency and incident response readiness.
  5. Clarify domain registration details and ensure WHOIS information is accurate and publicly available to improve domain legitimacy and trust.

Contact details published on the site

Addresses
Site observations

Automated reading of the public site. Ratings are indicative.

Business

Company
Carlain Student Houses
Description
Carlain Student Houses specialise in renting top quality homes to students. Our student houses are in central locations, conveniently close to college campuses across Cheltenham, Gloucestershire & Oxford.
Key services
Student house rentals, Lettings, Accommodation management
Content quality
good
Branding
consistent

Technology

Stack
jQuery 1.12.4, Google Tag Manager, Google Analytics (gtag.js), Google reCAPTCHA v3, Elfsight Instagram Feed Widget
Performance
moderate
Mobile
good
Accessibility
basic
SEO
good

Security

Observed score
75/100
Good practices seen
  • HTTPS enforced
  • Google reCAPTCHA v3 implemented on contact form
  • Google Tag Manager used

Analytics and tracking

Services
Google Analytics
Tracking level
moderate
Privacy practices
basic

Advertising

Transparency
basic

Site quality

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

Key observations

  1. Website is fully accessible with rich content and interactive features.
  2. No privacy or cookie policy pages found, which is a compliance gap.
  3. Contact information is clearly presented including multiple phone numbers, email, physical address, and a contact form with reCAPTCHA.
  4. Social media presence is strong with Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram links.
  5. Use of Google Analytics and Tag Manager indicates tracking but no explicit cookie consent mechanism detected.
  6. No security.txt or vulnerability disclosure policy found.
  7. WHOIS data is missing or invalid, which is a concern for domain legitimacy.
  8. Certifications and trust badges are displayed prominently in footer.
  9. Website uses older jQuery version (1.12.4) which may have known vulnerabilities.
  10. No explicit security headers detected in provided data.
Technical notes

Notes

The website is built on CMS Made Simple, utilizing jQuery 1.12.4, Google Tag Manager, Google Analytics, and Google reCAPTCHA v3. The site loads external resources from trusted domains and integrates an Instagram feed via Elfsight widgets. Performance is moderate with good mobile optimization and basic accessibility features. SEO is supported by appropriate meta tags and structured data in JSON-LD format describing the business as a RealEstateAgent. The site uses HTTPS exclusively, enhancing transport security. However, the use of an older jQuery version and lack of security headers indicate technical debt and potential security risks. The site could benefit from modernization efforts and improved accessibility compliance.
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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