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Security report for hvassallo.com

Vassallo & Associates Ltd · Transportation · Malta

Medium risk. 5 critical or high findings in GDPR outside view, SSL/TLS and 1 other check.

Security score

58/100

Risk levelMedium

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

Vassallo Associates is a well-established multidisciplinary firm specializing in legal and technical services primarily within the marine, energy, and yachting sectors. With a heritage dating back to 1870, the company operates from Malta and the UK, offering a broad portfolio of claims management, litigation, surveying, and advisory services. Their market position is strong, supported by a professional website that reflects their expertise and long-standing reputation. Technically, the website is built on WordPress using the Divi theme, leveraging modern analytics and tracking tools such as Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel, and LinkedIn Insight Tag. The site is hosted on a reputable CDN, ensuring moderate performance and good mobile optimization. SEO and accessibility are adequately addressed, though there is room for improvement in accessibility features. From a security perspective, the site enforces HTTPS and employs reCAPTCHA to protect forms, alongside a cookie consent mechanism compliant with GDPR. However, some security headers are not explicitly detected and could be implemented to enhance protection. No critical vulnerabilities or exposed sensitive data were found. Overall, the website presents a low-risk profile with strong business credibility and compliance posture. Strategic recommendations include enhancing security headers, publishing a formal security policy, and improving accessibility to further strengthen trust and compliance.

Scanned

NIS2 and GDPR posture

GDPR outside view
55/ 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

5 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 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.

    • 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 X-Frame-Options header

      Prevents clickjacking attacks

      What to do: Add "X-Frame-Options: DENY" or "X-Frame-Options: SAMEORIGIN"

    • 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';…

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

Keep watching hvassallo.com

This scan found 18 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

€39.90one-time

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Prices incl. 21% VAT. Secure checkout by Mollie; sold by SEQ SIA, Latvia.

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
30
Email security
80
DNS health
85
Network security
100
GDPR outside view
55
Average
58

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 hvassallo.com, from OffSeq Breach.

No leaked records found

Breach holds no records for hvassallo.com 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

The company holds a significant market presence in the marine legal and technical consultancy space, leveraging over 150 years of experience. Their competitive advantage lies in their multidisciplinary approach combining legal expertise with technical marine knowledge. The business model focuses on professional services catering to international clients, underwriters, and industry sectors such as energy and yachting. Revenue streams likely derive from litigation, claims management, technical surveys, and advisory services. The firm maintains a robust partnership ecosystem evidenced by active social media channels and a UK operational hub, indicating growth and diversification. Strategic observations highlight a focus on quality, trust, and long-term client relationships.

Security posture

The website demonstrates a mature security posture with HTTPS enforced and integration of Google reCAPTCHA to mitigate automated abuse on forms. Cookie consent is managed with granular user controls, supporting GDPR compliance. However, the absence of explicit security headers such as Content-Security-Policy and X-Frame-Options suggests potential areas for hardening. No exposed credentials or vulnerabilities were detected in the HTML content. Incident response and security policy information are not publicly available, indicating a gap in transparency. Overall, the security maturity is good but could benefit from formalized policies and enhanced header configurations.

Recommendations

  1. Implement comprehensive security headers including Content-Security-Policy, X-Frame-Options, X-Content-Type-Options, and Referrer-Policy to mitigate common web attacks.
  2. Publish a clear security policy and incident response contact information to improve transparency and trust.
  3. Regularly audit and update all WordPress components to prevent vulnerabilities from outdated software.
  4. Enhance website accessibility features to meet WCAG standards, improving usability and compliance.
  5. Maintain and monitor cookie consent mechanisms to ensure ongoing GDPR compliance and user privacy.

Contact details published on the site

Addresses
Legal name
Vassallo & Associates Ltd
VAT number
MT2114-9524
Site observations

Automated reading of the public site. Ratings are indicative.

Business

Company
Vassallo & Associates Ltd
Description
Vassallo Associates is a specialist multidisciplinary firm of legal and technical professionals with a heritage in the marine field since 1870. They offer a diverse range of claims and risk services for international clients and their underwriters.
Key services
Marine Litigation, Commercial Litigation, Claims Management, Marine Surveys and Inspections, Dynamic Positioning Services, Marine Audits, Marine Warranty Surveying, Marine Accident Investigation, Superyacht Surveyors, Management Systems
Content quality
excellent
Branding
consistent

Technology

Stack
WordPress, Divi Theme, jQuery, Google Tag Manager, Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel, LinkedIn Insight Tag, Google reCAPTCHA v3, Contact Form 7, Cookie Law Info plugin, WP Zoom Social Icons, WP WhatsApp Chat
Frameworks
WordPress CMS, Divi Theme Framework
Platforms
WordPress
Performance
moderate
Mobile
good
Accessibility
basic
SEO
good

Security

Observed score
85/100
Good practices seen
  • HTTPS enforced
  • Google reCAPTCHA v3 implemented on forms
  • Cookie consent mechanism with granular controls
  • No exposed sensitive data in HTML
  • Use of security and analytics scripts loaded asynchronously

Analytics and tracking

Services
Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel, LinkedIn Insight Tag
Tracking level
moderate
Privacy practices
good

Advertising

Tracking pixels
Facebook Pixel, LinkedIn Insight Tag
Marketing tools
Cookie Law Info
Transparency
good

Site quality

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

Key observations

  1. Website is professionally designed with clear navigation and comprehensive content
  2. Strong focus on marine legal and technical services with a long heritage
  3. Good privacy and cookie compliance with user consent mechanisms
  4. Use of modern tracking and analytics tools with GDPR considerations
  5. Contact information is complete and includes multiple channels
  6. No signs of blocking or WAF interference
  7. Security posture is good but could be improved with additional headers and policies
Technical notes

Notes

The website is built on WordPress CMS with the Divi theme, utilizing a modern tech stack including jQuery and various analytics/tracking scripts. Hosting is via Pressable CDN, providing moderate performance and good mobile responsiveness. SEO is well implemented with meta tags, Open Graph, and JSON-LD structured data. The site uses Contact Form 7 with Google reCAPTCHA v3 for form security. While the technical implementation is solid, there is an opportunity to improve accessibility and security headers. No critical technical debt or performance bottlenecks were observed.
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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