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Security report for ictskillnet.ie

Technology Ireland ICT Skillnet · Technology · Ireland

Medium risk. 6 critical or high findings in GDPR outside view, SSL/TLS and 1 other check.

Security score

56/100

Risk levelMedium

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

Technology Ireland ICT Skillnet is a government-backed business-support network based in Ireland, specializing in providing accredited and subsidised part-time professional technology training courses. Their offerings cover key areas such as Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain, Data Analytics, Cybersecurity, and more. The organization partners with top Irish universities and leading technology companies to deliver high-quality training, targeting individuals and businesses aiming to upskill their workforce. The website reflects a strong market position as a leading technology training provider in Ireland, supported by credible partnerships and government funding. From a technical perspective, the website is built on WordPress with a modern tech stack including Yoast SEO, Google Tag Manager, and various analytics and marketing tools. The site demonstrates good performance, mobile optimization, and accessibility features. SEO practices are well implemented, with comprehensive metadata and structured data enhancing search visibility. Security-wise, the site enforces HTTPS and employs cookie consent mechanisms compliant with GDPR. While explicit security headers are not fully confirmed, no critical vulnerabilities or exposed sensitive data were detected. The site uses reputable third-party analytics and marketing scripts with user consent. The domain registration details align well with the business claims, indicating high legitimacy and trustworthiness. Overall, the website presents a professional, secure, and user-friendly platform that effectively supports its mission of technology skills development. Strategic recommendations include enhancing security headers, publishing a vulnerability disclosure policy, and expanding incident response information 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

6 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

  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 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"

    • 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 ictskillnet.ie

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
0
Security headers
25
Email security
75
DNS health
80
Network security
100
GDPR outside view
55
Average
56

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

Technology Ireland ICT Skillnet operates as a government-supported network focused on technology skills development in Ireland. Its competitive advantage lies in strong partnerships with universities and industry leaders, enabling access to subsidised and accredited training programs. The business model centers on delivering professional development courses to individuals and corporate clients, leveraging government funding to reduce costs. Revenue streams likely include course fees, government grants, and partnerships. The target market includes technology professionals, businesses seeking workforce upskilling, and individuals pursuing career advancement in tech sectors. Growth indicators include a broad course catalog, active event hosting, and a large client base of over 6,000 companies. The partnership ecosystem with Skillnet Ireland and educational institutions enhances credibility and reach. Operationally, the organization maintains a robust digital presence with integrated marketing and analytics tools supporting customer engagement and service delivery.

Security posture

The website exhibits a mature security posture with mandatory HTTPS encryption and a comprehensive cookie consent mechanism aligned with GDPR requirements. The use of asynchronous loading for analytics and marketing scripts minimizes performance impact and reduces attack surface. No exposed sensitive data or vulnerable libraries were identified in the HTML content. However, explicit security headers such as Content-Security-Policy, X-Frame-Options, and X-Content-Type-Options were not confirmed and should be implemented to mitigate common web threats. Incident response and security policy information are not publicly available, indicating an area for improvement. The absence of a security.txt file or vulnerability disclosure policy limits transparency for security researchers. Overall, the site balances user privacy and security effectively but would benefit from enhanced header configurations and published security governance documentation.

Recommendations

  1. Implement and verify security headers including Content-Security-Policy, X-Frame-Options, and X-Content-Type-Options to strengthen web security.
  2. Publish a security.txt file and vulnerability disclosure policy to facilitate responsible reporting and improve transparency.
  3. Enhance incident response information availability on the website to demonstrate preparedness and build trust.
  4. Regularly audit third-party scripts and plugins for vulnerabilities and update them promptly.
  5. Continue to monitor and improve privacy compliance, ensuring all data collection aligns with GDPR and other regulations.
Site observations

Automated reading of the public site. Ratings are indicative.

Business

Company
Technology Ireland ICT Skillnet
Description
Access a wide range of accredited and subsidised part-time professional tech courses in areas such as AI, Blockchain, Data Analytics, and Cybersecurity.
Key services
Accredited part-time professional tech courses, Subsidised training programs, Free tech training, Upskilling resources in AI, Blockchain, Data Analytics, Cybersecurity
Content quality
excellent
Branding
consistent

Technology

Stack
WordPress 6.8.1, Yoast SEO Premium, Google Tag Manager, Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel, LinkedIn Insight Tag, Hotjar, FacetWP, Ninja Forms, Sassy Social Share, Complianz GDPR Cookie Consent, UserWay Accessibility Widget
Frameworks
Yoast SEO, FacetWP
Platforms
WordPress
Performance
moderate
Mobile
good
Accessibility
good
SEO
good

Security

Observed score
85/100
Good practices seen
  • HTTPS enforced
  • Consent management for cookies
  • No exposed sensitive data in HTML
  • External links open in new windows with noopener
  • Use of security and analytics scripts loaded asynchronously

Analytics and tracking

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

Advertising

Ad networks
Google Ads (AW-813924838)
Tracking pixels
Facebook Pixel, LinkedIn Insight Tag, Hotjar
Marketing tools
Mailchimp (newsletter), Sassy Social Share
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-structured
  2. Strong focus on technology training and upskilling
  3. Comprehensive cookie and privacy policies with consent management
  4. No visible security or privacy red flags
  5. Active social media presence and partnerships with reputable institutions
  6. Use of modern web technologies and analytics tools
Technical notes

Notes

The website is built on a modern WordPress platform with a well-maintained tech stack including Yoast SEO for search optimization, FacetWP for filtering, Ninja Forms for form management, and multiple analytics and marketing integrations such as Google Tag Manager, Facebook Pixel, LinkedIn Insight Tag, and Hotjar. Performance is moderate with asynchronous script loading and responsive design ensuring good user experience across devices. The site uses a custom theme with consistent branding and well-structured content. Technical debt appears low, but opportunities exist to enhance security headers and streamline third-party dependencies. Hosting provider details are not explicitly identified, suggesting potential for further infrastructure transparency. Overall, the technical implementation supports the business goals effectively with room for incremental improvements.
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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