Skip to main content

Security report for msd.ch

MSD Merck Sharp & Dohme (MSD) · Healthcare · Switzerland

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

Security score

72/100

Risk levelMedium

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

MSD Switzerland (MSD Merck Sharp & Dohme) is a large multinational pharmaceutical company focused on research, development, and distribution of medicines and vaccines. The company has a strong presence in Switzerland with offices and research centers in Luzern and Zürich, employing approximately 1000 staff. The website targets healthcare professionals, patients, and potential employees, providing comprehensive information about products, research, clinical trials, and career opportunities. Technically, the site is built on WordPress with modern SEO and cookie consent tools, optimized for mobile and accessibility. Security posture is strong with HTTPS, security headers, and no visible vulnerabilities, though explicit security policies and incident response contacts are not published. Overall, the site is professional, trustworthy, and compliant with GDPR and cookie regulations.

Scanned

This is an earlier scan of msd.ch. View the latest report

NIS2 and GDPR posture

GDPR outside view
53/ 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. 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

    • 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.

    • 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
    • High

      Weak SSL Key Length

      SSL certificate uses 256-bit key, which is considered weak

      What to do: Use at least 2048-bit RSA or 256-bit ECC key

      • CWE-326
      • OWASP A04:2025
      • Mozilla TLS: Mozilla Server Side TLS 6.0 intermediate: rsa_key_size 2048

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

Keep watching msd.ch

This scan found 21 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.

Billed monthly to your card. Cancel anytime. The full timeline opens with your unlock code.

Full report

€39.90one-time

  • The complete analysis as a PDF you can cite
  • Email delivery with an unlock code
  • Lifetime access to this report

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
42
Security headers
80
Email security
70
DNS health
85
Network security
100
GDPR outside view
53
Average
72

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 msd.ch, from OffSeq Breach.

No leaked records found

Breach holds no records for msd.ch 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

MSD Switzerland operates as a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., serving the Swiss healthcare market with pharmaceuticals and vaccines. The company leverages its global research capabilities to provide innovative healthcare solutions. Its business model includes research and development, clinical trials, and product distribution. The website reflects a mature digital presence with multilingual support and clear navigation. The company holds a Top Employer certification, enhancing its attractiveness to talent. The extensive network of related MSD domains worldwide indicates a broad partnership and subsidiary ecosystem. The company targets healthcare professionals, patients, and job seekers, positioning itself as a trusted healthcare provider in Switzerland.

Security posture

The website demonstrates a mature security posture with enforced HTTPS, presence of key security headers, and cookie consent mechanisms aligned with GDPR. No exposed sensitive data or vulnerable libraries were detected in the HTML content. However, the absence of a public security policy, incident response information, or vulnerability disclosure program limits transparency. No direct security contact emails were found, which could hinder incident reporting. Overall, the site is secure for users but could improve transparency and readiness by publishing explicit security and incident response information.

Recommendations

  1. Publish a dedicated security policy page outlining security practices and commitments.
  2. Implement and publish a vulnerability disclosure policy or security.txt file to encourage responsible reporting.
  3. Provide direct security contact channels such as security@ or abuse@ email addresses.
  4. Regularly review and audit third-party scripts and plugins to mitigate potential vulnerabilities.
  5. Enhance data protection officer visibility by publishing contact information to improve GDPR compliance transparency.
Site observations

Automated reading of the public site. Ratings are indicative.

Business

Company
MSD Merck Sharp & Dohme (MSD)
Description
MSD erforscht und entwickelt Medikamente und Impfstoffe, die Leben retten und die Gesundheit von Patienten verbessern sollen. In der Schweiz setzen sich 1000 Mitarbeitende in Luzern und Zürich dafür ein.
Key services
Medikamente, Impfstoffe, Klinische Studien, Forschung, Karriereangebote
Content quality
excellent
Branding
consistent

Technology

Stack
WordPress, Yoast SEO plugin, Tiny Slider (tns), Google Tag Manager, OneTrust Cookie Consent
Frameworks
WordPress
Platforms
WordPress CMS
Performance
moderate
Mobile
excellent
Accessibility
good
SEO
excellent

Security

Observed score
85/100
Good practices seen
  • HTTPS enforced
  • Cookie consent implemented
  • No exposed sensitive data in HTML
  • Use of Google Tag Manager for controlled script loading

Analytics and tracking

Services
Google Tag Manager
Tracking level
moderate
Privacy practices
good

Advertising

Marketing tools
Yoast SEO
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 no blocking or WAF challenges.
  2. Content is professionally presented in German with multilingual support.
  3. Strong focus on healthcare and pharmaceutical services.
  4. Comprehensive cookie consent and privacy compliance mechanisms in place.
  5. No direct security or incident response contact information found.
  6. Use of modern web technologies and SEO best practices.
  7. No suspicious or malicious content detected.
Technical notes

Notes

The website is built on WordPress CMS using the Yoast SEO plugin for search optimization and OneTrust for cookie consent management. It employs Tiny Slider for interactive content and Google Tag Manager for analytics and tag management. The site is mobile-optimized with responsive images and accessible navigation. Performance is moderate, with potential for improvement in loading speed. The technical stack is modern and well-maintained, with no visible deprecated or vulnerable components. Hosting provider details are not explicitly identified. The site follows SEO best practices with comprehensive metadata and structured data (JSON-LD). Overall, the technical infrastructure supports a professional and user-friendly digital presence.
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

Earlier scans of this domain

  1. 73/100Medium29 findingsView report
Reviews of this site

Share your experience with msd.ch. Every review is verified by email and published after moderation.

Overall rating
Select a rating
4000 characters remaining

We’ll email you to confirm your review and keep your details private.

Community rating

No published reviews yet. Be the first to review msd.ch.

Feedback on this report

Rate this report, add an optional comment, and tell us if you want a security specialist to follow up.

Overall report quality
Select a rating
2000 characters remaining

We only use your feedback to improve Guard reports. Contact details are never shared.