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Security report for gca.org

GCA.org - The Global Center on Adaptation · Government · Netherlands

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

Security score

55/100

Risk levelMedium

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

The Global Center on Adaptation (GCA) is a well-established non-profit organization founded in 1995, focused on accelerating climate adaptation solutions worldwide. It operates globally with multiple regional offices and partners, including the African Development Bank. The website reflects a mature digital presence with comprehensive content on climate adaptation programs, youth engagement, and advocacy. Technically, the site is built on WordPress with modern technologies such as Google Analytics, Cookiebot for consent management, and Mapbox for mapping features. The site is fast, mobile-optimized, and SEO-friendly. Security posture is strong with HTTPS enforcement and domain transfer protections, though DNSSEC is not enabled and no explicit security policy or vulnerability disclosure was found. Overall, the domain registration data aligns well with the organization's profile, indicating high legitimacy and trustworthiness.

Scanned

NIS2 and GDPR posture

GDPR outside view
68/ 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

4 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.

    • Critical

      Unable to retrieve SSL certificate

      Could not establish secure connection to retrieve certificate information

      What to do: Check if the server is accessible and SSL/TLS is properly configured

  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 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';…

  3. 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

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

Keep watching gca.org

This scan found 16 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
0
Security headers
55
Email security
80
DNS health
85
Network security
40
GDPR outside view
68
Average
55

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

GCA holds a strong market position as a global leader in climate adaptation initiatives, targeting governments, NGOs, youth, and climate stakeholders. Its business model centers on advocacy, program implementation, and partnership facilitation. The organization channels significant climate finance and supports millions of beneficiaries across multiple countries. The website demonstrates a robust partnership ecosystem and active engagement through social media and events. Growth indicators include large-scale programs like the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program and youth-focused climate action days.

Security posture

The website exhibits a mature security posture with HTTPS enabled, clientTransferProhibited domain status, and cookie consent mechanisms. However, there is room for improvement by enabling DNSSEC, publishing a formal security policy, and providing incident response contacts. No vulnerabilities or exposed sensitive data were detected. Security headers appear to be partially implemented but could be enhanced with explicit Content-Security-Policy headers. Overall, the security risk is low but could be further mitigated with additional transparency and technical controls.

Recommendations

  1. Enable DNSSEC to enhance DNS security and prevent spoofing.
  2. Publish a dedicated security policy page and provide incident response contact information.
  3. Implement and enforce a Content-Security-Policy header to mitigate XSS and related attacks.
  4. Consider publishing a vulnerability disclosure policy or security.txt file to encourage responsible reporting.
  5. Maintain regular security audits and update third-party libraries to avoid vulnerabilities.

Contact details published on the site

Addresses
Legal name
Global Center on Adaptation
Site observations

Automated reading of the public site. Ratings are indicative.

Business

Company
GCA.org - The Global Center on Adaptation
Description
A solutions broker to accelerate action and support for adaptation solutions around the world
Key services
Climate adaptation programs, Advocacy and agenda setting, Research and reports, Youth education and engagement, Regional offices and partnerships
Content quality
excellent
Branding
consistent

Technology

Stack
WordPress 6.7.1, jQuery 3.7.1, Google Analytics, Google Tag Manager, Cookiebot, Swiper.js, Mapbox
Frameworks
Yoast SEO
Platforms
WordPress
Performance
fast
Mobile
excellent
Accessibility
good
SEO
excellent

Security

Observed score
85/100
Good practices seen
  • HTTPS enforced
  • ClientTransferProhibited domain status
  • Auto-renew enabled
  • Cookie consent mechanism implemented
  • No exposed sensitive data found

Analytics and tracking

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

Advertising

Marketing tools
Cookiebot
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 maintained
  2. Strong focus on climate adaptation and global programs
  3. Multiple regional offices with physical addresses and phone numbers
  4. Active social media presence on major platforms
  5. Comprehensive privacy and cookie policies with consent mechanisms
  6. Use of modern web technologies and SEO best practices
  7. No signs of malicious or suspicious activity
Technical notes

Notes

The website uses a modern WordPress CMS with up-to-date plugins and libraries including jQuery, Swiper.js, and Mapbox. Performance is optimized with asynchronous script loading and DNS prefetching. SEO is enhanced by Yoast SEO plugin and structured data (JSON-LD) is implemented for rich search results. The site is mobile responsive and accessible with clear navigation and well-structured content. Hosting details are not explicit but domain name servers are managed by The Registrar Company B.V. Technical risks are minimal with no outdated or vulnerable libraries detected.
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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