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Security report for hellens.co.uk

Hellens Group · Real Estate · United Kingdom

High risk. 6 critical or high findings in SSL/TLS, Network security and 2 other checks.

Security score

45/100

Risk levelHigh

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

Hellens Group is a well-established UK-based real estate development company specializing in residential, commercial, and retail environmental regeneration primarily in the North East, Tees Valley, and Yorkshire regions. Founded in 1973, the company has a strong market position with recognized projects such as Burtree Garden Village and a portfolio that includes affordable housing, land, and property management. Their business model integrates land acquisition, planning, construction, and property management, targeting regional developers, investors, and community stakeholders. Technically, the website is built on WordPress with a moderate tech stack including jQuery, Google reCAPTCHA, and Yoast SEO. The site is mobile-optimized with good SEO practices and moderate performance. However, the use of an outdated jQuery version presents a security risk. The site employs HTTPS and integrates Google Analytics and Tag Manager for tracking, though cookie consent mechanisms are absent. From a security perspective, the site benefits from HTTPS and spam protection via reCAPTCHA but lacks advanced security headers and explicit security or incident response policies. No critical vulnerabilities were detected, but updating libraries and enhancing security policies would improve posture. Privacy compliance is basic with privacy and cookie policies present but no active consent mechanism. Overall, the website is professional, trustworthy, and content-rich, supporting the company's credibility and business goals. Strategic improvements in security and privacy compliance would further strengthen the site’s risk profile and user trust.

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

6 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

  2. 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

  3. GDPR outside view

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

    • 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

  4. 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"

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

Keep watching hellens.co.uk

This scan found 29 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

Email alerts on material changes and an exportable JSON history of every change.

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Full report

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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
47
Security headers
15
Email security
55
DNS health
65
Network security
20
GDPR outside view
68
Average
45

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

Hellens Group operates as a medium-sized real estate development firm with a strong regional footprint in the UK. Their competitive advantage lies in their comprehensive in-house approach to regeneration projects, combining planning, construction, and property management. The company has demonstrated growth through large-scale projects with Garden Communities status and a diversified portfolio including affordable housing and commercial properties. Their target customers include local governments, investors, and community groups. The company maintains a partnership ecosystem including subsidiaries like Hellens Residential and Oakdale Contracts. The website reflects a mature digital presence with SEO and multimedia content supporting marketing and stakeholder engagement.

Security posture

The current security maturity level is moderate. The site uses HTTPS and Google reCAPTCHA to protect forms from spam. However, the presence of an outdated jQuery version introduces potential vulnerabilities. The absence of security headers and lack of published security policies or incident response contacts indicate gaps in security governance. GDPR compliance is partially addressed with privacy and cookie policies but lacks active consent mechanisms. No incident response readiness or vulnerability disclosure information is provided. Overall, the security culture appears functional but could benefit from formalized policies and technical updates to reduce risk exposure.

Recommendations

  1. Update all JavaScript libraries, especially jQuery, to the latest secure versions to mitigate known vulnerabilities.
  2. Implement and enforce security headers such as Content-Security-Policy, X-Frame-Options, and Strict-Transport-Security to enhance protection against common web attacks.
  3. Add a cookie consent banner or mechanism to comply fully with GDPR and ePrivacy regulations.
  4. Publish a clear security policy and incident response contact information to improve transparency and readiness.
  5. Regularly audit and monitor website components for vulnerabilities and maintain an up-to-date security posture.
Site observations

Automated reading of the public site. Ratings are indicative.

Business

Company
Hellens Group
Description
Hellens Group is a North East UK based company specializing in the development of residential and mixed-use sites, civil engineering contracting, and provision of affordable housing. They manage a portfolio of land and property including office spaces, industrial estates, retail units, and residential properties. They focus on regeneration of brownfield sites and creating communities with tailored solutions from planning to construction.
Key services
Residential and mixed-use site development, Civil engineering contracting, Affordable homes provision, Land and property portfolio management, Hard landscaping product manufacturing
Content quality
good
Branding
consistent

Technology

Stack
jQuery 1.8.3, Google reCAPTCHA v3, Yoast SEO plugin, Contact Form 7, Google Maps API, Slick Carousel
Frameworks
WordPress
Platforms
WordPress CMS
Performance
moderate
Mobile
good
Accessibility
basic
SEO
good

Security

Observed score
75/100
Good practices seen
  • HTTPS enforced
  • Google reCAPTCHA v3 integration on forms
  • No exposed sensitive data in HTML

Analytics and tracking

Services
Google Analytics
Tracking level
moderate
Privacy practices
basic

Advertising

Tracking pixels
Google Analytics (via gtag.js)
Transparency
basic

Site quality

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

Key observations

  1. Website is professionally designed and well-structured with clear navigation.
  2. Content is relevant and focused on real estate development and community regeneration.
  3. Use of modern SEO practices including Yoast SEO and structured data.
  4. Contact information is available via email and contact form but no phone number or physical address explicitly listed.
  5. No explicit security policy or incident response information found.
  6. Use of outdated jQuery version is a potential security risk.
  7. No cookie consent mechanism despite cookie policy page.
  8. No terms of service page found.
  9. Google reCAPTCHA v3 is implemented for spam protection on forms.
  10. No signs of adult or questionable content; content is safe for general audiences.
Technical notes

Notes

The website is built on WordPress CMS with a tech stack including jQuery 1.8.3, Google reCAPTCHA v3, Yoast SEO, Contact Form 7, Google Maps API, and Slick Carousel. The site uses modern SEO techniques including structured data (JSON-LD) and meta tags. Performance is moderate with asynchronous loading of scripts and responsive design for mobile devices. However, the use of an outdated jQuery version is a technical debt and security risk. The site lacks advanced security headers and some accessibility features could be improved. Hosting provider details are not explicitly identified. Overall, the technical implementation supports business needs but requires modernization and security hardening.
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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