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Security report for host-students.com

Host Student Housing · Real Estate · United Kingdom

Medium risk. 4 critical or high findings in GDPR outside view, SSL/TLS and 1 other check.

Security score

61/100

Risk levelMedium

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

Host Student Housing operates as a reputable provider of student accommodation across the UK and Ireland, offering furnished rooms with all bills included. The company targets students, including international students, providing secure, well-located housing options near campuses and city centers. Their market position is strengthened by multiple awards and certifications, reflecting a commitment to quality and student wellbeing. Technically, the website is built on WordPress with modern marketing and analytics integrations such as HubSpot and Google Tag Manager, ensuring good SEO and user experience. Security posture is solid with HTTPS, reCAPTCHA, and secure access controls, though explicit security policies and incident response details are not publicly visible. Overall, the site demonstrates a mature digital presence with strong business credibility and compliance adherence.

Scanned

NIS2 and GDPR posture

GDPR outside view
48/ 100 · High
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. GDPR outside view

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

    • Critical

      No HTTPS encryption

      GDPR requires appropriate security measures for personal data

      What to do: Implement SSL/TLS certificate for HTTPS

    • 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

  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.

    • Critical

      No HTTPS Encryption

      Website does not use HTTPS encryption, making all data transmission vulnerable to interception

      What to do: Implement SSL/TLS certificate and redirect all HTTP traffic to HTTPS

  3. 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';…

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Keep watching host-students.com

This scan found 17 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
0
Security headers
65
Email security
70
DNS health
80
Network security
100
GDPR outside view
48
Average
61

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

Host Student Housing maintains a strong market presence in the student accommodation sector, focusing on hassle-free, all-inclusive living solutions. Their business model emphasizes direct bookings, group accommodations, and international student services. The company leverages partnerships and certifications to build trust and attract students. Their digital ecosystem includes comprehensive content, social media engagement, and marketing automation, supporting growth and customer acquisition. The absence of direct contact emails or phone numbers on the homepage suggests a preference for managed contact channels, likely to streamline inquiries and maintain data privacy.

Security posture

The website employs HTTPS and integrates Google reCAPTCHA to protect forms, indicating attention to basic security best practices. On-site security features such as CCTV and secure key card access are highlighted in content, reinforcing physical security. However, the lack of visible security headers and absence of a published security policy or incident response plan represent areas for improvement. No vulnerabilities or exposed sensitive data were detected in the HTML content. The security score is good but could be enhanced by publishing detailed policies and implementing additional HTTP security headers.

Recommendations

  1. Implement and publish a dedicated security policy and incident response plan on the website.
  2. Add HTTP security headers such as Content Security Policy (CSP), Strict-Transport-Security (HSTS), and X-Frame-Options.
  3. Introduce a security.txt file to facilitate vulnerability disclosure and improve transparency.
  4. Regularly audit third-party scripts and plugins for vulnerabilities and update them promptly.
  5. Enhance contact information availability with dedicated security and privacy contacts to improve trust.
Site observations

Automated reading of the public site. Ratings are indicative.

Business

Company
Host Student Housing
Description
Host provide award winning student accommodation across the UK & Ireland. All rooms are furnished and bills are included in the rent.
Key services
Student accommodation, Group bookings, International student housing
Content quality
excellent
Branding
consistent

Technology

Stack
JavaScript, Google Tag Manager, HubSpot, Google reCAPTCHA, Yoast SEO
Frameworks
WordPress
Platforms
WordPress
Performance
moderate
Mobile
good
Accessibility
good
SEO
excellent

Security

Observed score
80/100
Good practices seen
  • HTTPS enabled
  • Google reCAPTCHA for forms
  • Secure key card/fob access mentioned
  • On-site CCTV coverage

Analytics and tracking

Services
HubSpot Analytics, Google Tag Manager
Tracking level
moderate
Privacy practices
good

Advertising

Tracking pixels
Facebook Pixel, HubSpot Analytics
Marketing tools
HubSpot
Transparency
good

Site quality

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

Key observations

  1. Website is fully accessible with rich content and multiple location listings
  2. Strong focus on student accommodation in UK and Ireland
  3. Multiple awards and certifications displayed enhancing trust
  4. Use of modern marketing and analytics tools like HubSpot and Google Tag Manager
  5. No exposed sensitive data or security warnings detected
  6. No explicit security or incident response policies found on homepage
  7. Contact information primarily via contact page and forms, no direct emails or phone numbers found in HTML
  8. Social media presence on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube
Technical notes

Notes

The website is built on WordPress 6.8.1, utilizing Yoast SEO for optimization and HubSpot for marketing and analytics. It uses Google Tag Manager and Facebook Pixel for tracking and retargeting. The site is mobile-optimized with lazy loading images and responsive design elements. Performance is moderate, with room for improvement in loading speed and accessibility features. The technical stack is modern and well-integrated, supporting a professional user experience and effective digital marketing.
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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