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Security report for digitalcourage.social

Digitalcourage e.V. · Non-profit · Germany

Low risk. 3 critical or high findings in GDPR outside view and SSL/TLS.

Security score

77/100

Risk levelLow

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

Digitalcourage.social is a privacy-focused Mastodon instance operated by the German non-profit Digitalcourage e.V. It provides decentralized social media access to users committed to social activism and privacy, charging a modest annual prepaid fee to sustain operations. The platform emphasizes respectful community interaction and strong data protection principles, including shielding user IP addresses from moderators. Technically, the site runs Mastodon version 4.4.5 with modern JavaScript frameworks like React, and integrates with ActivityPub relays to enhance federation. Security posture is solid with HTTPS and privacy best practices, though some security headers and cookie consent mechanisms could be improved. WHOIS data is privacy protected but consistent with the organization's profile. Overall, the site is trustworthy, professional, and well-aligned with its mission.

Scanned

NIS2 and GDPR posture

GDPR outside view
58/ 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

3 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

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

Keep watching digitalcourage.social

This scan found 19 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
72
Security headers
75
Email security
70
DNS health
85
Network security
100
GDPR outside view
58
Average
77

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 digitalcourage.social, from OffSeq Breach.

Total records
9
Employees
0
Customers
9
Third parties
0
Weak passwords
11%

1 subdomain affected

See the 10 newest leaked credentials

A one-off add-on to this report that lists the most recent identifier and password pairs OffSeq Breach holds for digitalcourage.social.

Select it in the checkout above.

Breach keeps ingesting new leaks, so these numbers can grow between scans.

Technical appendix

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

Business context

Business profile

The organization positions itself as a niche non-profit provider of decentralized social media services, targeting privacy-conscious users and activists. Its subscription model ensures sustainable funding, differentiating it from free or commercial Mastodon instances. The partnership with Fedimin.net and use of relays indicate active engagement in the federated social ecosystem. The clear contact details, transparent fee structure, and emphasis on respectful community standards enhance credibility. The business operates primarily in Germany with a small user base (~837 active users), reflecting a focused community approach rather than mass-market scale.

Security posture

Security maturity is moderate to high, with enforced HTTPS, privacy protections for user data, and federation via trusted relays. However, the absence of explicit security headers (e.g., CSP, HSTS) and lack of published security policies or incident response contacts represent areas for improvement. No vulnerabilities or exposed sensitive data were detected in the analysis. The platform's commitment to privacy is evident, but formalizing security documentation and cookie consent would strengthen compliance and user trust.

Recommendations

  1. Implement and enforce security headers such as Content Security Policy and HTTP Strict Transport Security.
  2. Add a cookie consent banner to comply with EU cookie laws and enhance transparency.
  3. Publish a clear security policy and incident response contact information on the website.
  4. Consider creating a vulnerability disclosure policy or security.txt file to encourage responsible reporting.
  5. Regularly audit third-party dependencies and update Mastodon and related software to mitigate potential vulnerabilities.

Contact details published on the site

Addresses
Legal name
Digitalcourage e.V.
Site observations

Automated reading of the public site. Ratings are indicative.

Business

Company
Digitalcourage e.V.
Description
digitalcourage.social is a Mastodon instance operated by Digitalcourage e.V. for the public good. It offers decentralized social media access with a sustainable funding model charging €1 per month paid annually via SEPA direct debit. The platform welcomes people engaged in creating a livable world and emphasizes respectful interaction and data privacy.
Key services
Mastodon social networking, Federated social media access, Privacy-focused hosting
Content quality
good
Branding
consistent

Technology

Stack
Mastodon 4.4.5, React, JavaScript ES Modules, ActivityPub, SEPA payment integration (implied)
Frameworks
Mastodon, React
Platforms
Fediverse
Performance
moderate
Mobile
good
Accessibility
basic
SEO
basic

Security

Observed score
85/100
Good practices seen
  • HTTPS enforced
  • No IP address visibility to moderation team
  • Use of ActivityPub relays for federation

Analytics and tracking

Tracking level
minimal
Privacy practices
excellent

Advertising

Transparency
excellent

Site quality

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

Key observations

  1. Website is a Mastodon instance about page operated by Digitalcourage e.V.
  2. Content is in German with some English metadata
  3. No visible security headers in HTML source
  4. No cookie consent banner detected
  5. Contact info includes email, phone, and physical address
  6. No terms of service page found
  7. No vulnerability disclosure or security.txt found
  8. Uses modern JavaScript modules and React framework
  9. No advertising or tracking scripts detected
  10. Strong emphasis on privacy and data protection
Technical notes

Notes

The website uses Mastodon 4.4.5 with React and modern JavaScript modules, indicating a contemporary tech stack. The site is mobile optimized and accessible with a clear navigation structure. Performance is moderate, with no major errors or broken elements detected. SEO is basic but present via meta tags and Open Graph data. Hosting provider details are not explicit, but the site uses HTTPS with a valid certificate. The absence of cookie consent and some security headers suggests room for technical hardening. Overall, the technical infrastructure supports the business goals effectively but could benefit from enhanced security and privacy features.
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. 73/100Medium30 findingsView report
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