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Security report for cheffins.co.uk

Cheffins · Real Estate · United Kingdom

Medium risk. 5 critical or high findings in SSL/TLS and Security headers.

Security score

65/100

Risk levelMedium

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

Cheffins is a well-established UK-based firm specializing in property, land, fine art, and farm machinery auctions and advisory services. With over 200 years of history, it holds a strong market position in the real estate and auction sectors, serving a diverse clientele including property buyers, sellers, and investors. The website reflects a professional business model focused on service delivery across multiple specialized sectors. Technically, the website employs a modern technology stack including jQuery, Google Tag Manager, Google Analytics, Hotjar, and Cookiebot for analytics and compliance. The site is well-structured with good navigation and mobile optimization, although some accessibility features could be enhanced. Security posture is solid with HTTPS and cookie consent mechanisms in place, but lacks visible security headers and explicit privacy or security policies. The WHOIS data query failed due to querying the subdomain 'www.cheffins.co.uk' instead of the registered domain, but the active website presence and professional content indicate legitimacy. Overall, the site is trustworthy with moderate to good security and privacy compliance, but could improve transparency and security best practices.

Scanned

NIS2 and GDPR posture

GDPR outside view
83/ 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. 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

  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 Strict-Transport-Security header

      Forces HTTPS connections

      What to do: Add "Strict-Transport-Security: max-age=31536000; includeSubDomains; preload"

      • CWE-319
      • OWASP A04:2025
      • ASVS V3.4.1
    • High

      Missing X-Frame-Options header

      Prevents clickjacking attacks

      What to do: Add "X-Frame-Options: DENY" or "X-Frame-Options: SAMEORIGIN"

    • 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';…

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

Keep watching cheffins.co.uk

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

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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
42
Security headers
15
Email security
80
DNS health
70
Network security
100
GDPR outside view
83
Average
65

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

Cheffins operates in the real estate and auction industry, leveraging its long-standing reputation and local expertise with a broad service portfolio including residential and commercial property sales, machinery auctions, fine art valuations, and rural consultancy. The company targets property owners, buyers, and investors primarily in the UK market. Its digital presence supports multiple service lines with detailed content and navigation, indicating a mature business model. The integration of third-party analytics and marketing tools suggests active customer engagement and data-driven marketing strategies. The lack of explicit contact details and privacy policies on the main site may limit direct customer trust and regulatory compliance visibility. The company benefits from strong trust signals such as Trustpilot reviews and a professional website design. No related or subsidiary domains were identified in the provided data.

Security posture

The website enforces HTTPS and uses a cookie consent mechanism compliant with GDPR principles, indicating a baseline security and privacy posture. However, no explicit security headers (e.g., Content-Security-Policy, X-Frame-Options) were detected in the provided data, which could expose the site to certain web-based attacks. The absence of a published privacy policy or terms of service page in the analyzed content reduces transparency and may affect compliance with data protection regulations. No vulnerability disclosures or incident response contacts were found, limiting the site's readiness for security incidents. The use of multiple third-party scripts increases the attack surface and necessitates regular security audits. Overall, the security posture is moderate but could be significantly improved by implementing recommended headers, publishing comprehensive policies, and establishing clear incident response channels.

Recommendations

  1. Implement and configure standard security headers such as Content-Security-Policy, X-Frame-Options, and X-Content-Type-Options to enhance protection against common web attacks.
  2. Publish a comprehensive privacy policy and terms of service pages clearly accessible from the website footer or main navigation to improve transparency and regulatory compliance.
  3. Establish a vulnerability disclosure policy or security.txt file to facilitate responsible reporting of security issues.
  4. Enhance accessibility features to meet recognized standards and improve user experience for all visitors.
  5. Regularly audit and update third-party scripts and tracking tools to minimize security risks and ensure privacy compliance.
Site observations

Automated reading of the public site. Ratings are indicative.

Business

Company
Cheffins
Description
Cheffins is a market leading firm of auctioneers, surveyors, property advisors and estate agents with offices in Cambridge, Ely, Haverhill, Saffron Walden, Newmarket and London.
Key services
Residential Sales & Lettings, Machinery & Vintage Auctions, Commercial Property, Fine Art, Rural Services, Property Auctions, Land, Planning, Development & New Homes
Content quality
good
Branding
consistent

Technology

Stack
jQuery 2.2.4, Google Tag Manager, Google Analytics (gtag.js), Hotjar, Cookiebot, Trustpilot widget
Performance
moderate
Mobile
good
Accessibility
basic
SEO
good

Security

Observed score
75/100
Good practices seen
  • HTTPS enforced
  • Cookie consent mechanism implemented
  • No exposed sensitive data in HTML

Analytics and tracking

Services
Google Analytics, Microsoft Clarity, Hotjar
Tracking level
moderate
Privacy practices
good

Advertising

Ad networks
Simpli.fi
Tracking pixels
Microsoft Clarity, Hotjar, Trustpilot
Marketing tools
Cookiebot
Transparency
good

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 navigation
  2. No WAF or blocking detected
  3. Cookie consent banner present and functional
  4. No explicit privacy or terms of service pages found in provided content
  5. No direct contact emails or phone numbers found in the truncated HTML
  6. Use of multiple third-party analytics and marketing scripts
  7. Professional design and consistent branding
  8. WHOIS data query was performed on 'www.cheffins.co.uk' which is invalid per Nominet rules, causing WHOIS failure
Technical notes

Notes

The website uses a combination of legacy and modern web technologies, including jQuery 2.2.4, Google Tag Manager, Google Analytics, Hotjar, and Cookiebot for analytics and consent management. The site is served over HTTPS, indicating secure transport. The HTML structure is well-formed with meta tags for SEO and Open Graph for social media integration. Performance appears moderate with asynchronous loading of scripts and external resources. Mobile optimization is good, with responsive design elements evident. However, no CMS or hosting provider information was detected, and no advanced frameworks were identified. Accessibility is basic, with room for improvement. The site could benefit from modernizing some components and enhancing security configurations to reduce technical debt and improve resilience.
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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