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Security report for demos.co.uk

Demos · Government · United Kingdom

Medium risk. 4 critical or high findings in Security headers, SSL/TLS and 1 other check.

Security score

71/100

Risk levelMedium

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

Demos is a well-established UK-based non-profit think tank founded in 1996, focused on policy research, publishing, and hosting events to promote collaborative democracy and public service reform. The organization targets policymakers, government bodies, charities, and businesses, positioning itself as a leading cross-party think tank in Britain. The website reflects a professional and consistent brand image with clear communication of its mission and services. Technically, the site is built on WordPress, uses modern libraries like jQuery, and integrates Google Analytics and Tag Manager with a robust cookie consent mechanism, indicating a mature digital infrastructure. Security posture is solid with HTTPS enforced and no visible vulnerabilities, though the absence of explicit security policies and headers suggests room for improvement. Overall, the site is trustworthy, compliant with GDPR, and provides comprehensive contact and policy information, supporting its credibility and transparency.

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

4 findings rated critical or high. Fix these first.

  1. 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 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';…

  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

      Domain Expires Soon

      Domain expires in 1 days

      What to do: Renew domain registration before expiration

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

Keep watching demos.co.uk

This scan found 23 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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  • 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
80
Email security
70
DNS health
50
Network security
100
GDPR outside view
83
Average
71

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 demos.co.uk, from OffSeq Breach.

No leaked records found

Breach holds no records for demos.co.uk right now. New leaks arrive continuously, so monitoring on Breach alerts you if that changes.

Monitor on Breach (opens in a new tab)

Technical appendix

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

Business context

Business profile

Demos operates in the government and non-profit sectors, leveraging partnerships with reputable organizations such as JRF, PwC, and Financial Fairness. Its business model centers on research, policy development, and event facilitation, generating influence through thought leadership and collaboration. The website's content and structure indicate a focus on transparency and engagement with stakeholders. The presence of a cookie consent tool and detailed privacy policy reflects compliance with data protection regulations. The organization's medium size and long domain history support its established market presence. Strategic partnerships and a clear value proposition enhance its competitive advantage in the think tank landscape.

Security posture

The website demonstrates a good security baseline with HTTPS enabled and a cookie consent mechanism that respects user privacy preferences. No security headers were detected in the HTML content, which is a potential area for enhancement. There is no published security policy or incident response information, which could improve transparency and preparedness. The use of third-party scripts like Google Analytics is managed with consent controls, mitigating privacy risks. No vulnerabilities or exposed sensitive data were found. Overall, the security posture is adequate for a non-profit organization but could benefit from formalized policies and additional technical controls.

Recommendations

  1. Publish a dedicated security policy page outlining security practices and commitments.
  2. Add security headers such as Content-Security-Policy, X-Frame-Options, and Strict-Transport-Security.
  3. Provide clear incident response contact information for reporting security issues.
  4. Regularly review and update third-party scripts to mitigate potential vulnerabilities.
  5. Consider implementing and publishing a vulnerability disclosure or security.txt file to encourage responsible reporting.

Contact details published on the site

Addresses
Legal name
Demos
Registration number
1042046
Site observations

Automated reading of the public site. Ratings are indicative.

Business

Company
Demos
Description
Demos is Britain’s leading cross-party think tank. We put people at the heart of policy-making to create bold ideas and a more collaborative democracy.
Key services
Research, Policy development, Events and networks, Collaboration with foundations, charities, government and businesses
Content quality
excellent
Branding
consistent

Technology

Stack
jQuery 3.6.0, Google Tag Manager, Google Analytics, Civic Cookie Control, WordPress 6.8.3
Performance
moderate
Mobile
good
Accessibility
good
SEO
good

Security

Observed score
85/100
Good practices seen
  • HTTPS enforced
  • Cookie consent mechanism implemented
  • No exposed sensitive data in HTML
  • No visible vulnerable libraries

Analytics and tracking

Services
Google Analytics
Tracking level
moderate
Privacy practices
good

Advertising

Transparency
good

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. Clear and accessible privacy and cookie policies with consent mechanism
  3. Contact information is prominently displayed and consistent
  4. No signs of malicious or suspicious content
  5. Use of modern web technologies and analytics with user consent
  6. No visible security policy or incident response information
  7. No security headers detected in HTML content
  8. Partners and collaborators are reputable organizations
Technical notes

Notes

The website is built on WordPress 6.8.3 with jQuery 3.6.0 and integrates Google Tag Manager and Google Analytics for analytics and marketing. It uses Civic Cookie Control for GDPR-compliant cookie consent. Hosting is provided by Krystal Hosting Ltd, a UK-based provider. The site demonstrates good mobile optimization, accessibility, and SEO practices with proper meta tags and structured data (JSON-LD). Performance is moderate, with preloading of fonts and asynchronous loading of scripts. There is no evidence of outdated or vulnerable libraries. The technical infrastructure supports a professional and user-friendly experience but could be enhanced with additional security headers and performance optimizations.
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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