Skip to main content

Security report for sbcnews.co.uk

SBC News · Media · United Kingdom

Medium risk. 4 critical or high findings in Security headers, GDPR outside view and 1 other check.

Security score

75/100

Risk levelMedium

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

SBC News is a well-established media company specializing in providing comprehensive news, analysis, and insights for the sports betting industry. Founded in 2013, it serves a global audience of industry professionals and enthusiasts with a broad range of content including news articles, interviews, podcasts, webinars, and event coverage. The company maintains a strong market position within its niche, supported by a network of sister sites covering related sectors and regions. Technically, the website is built on WordPress with a modern tech stack including jQuery, Matomo analytics, Google Analytics, and various advertising and marketing tools. The site demonstrates good mobile optimization, SEO practices, and moderate performance. Hosting is provided by GoDaddy, and the site uses HTTPS with a good SSL configuration. From a security perspective, SBC News employs standard best practices such as HTTPS, cookie consent mechanisms, and no visible vulnerabilities or exposed sensitive data. However, some security headers are not explicitly detected and could be improved. Privacy compliance is good with GDPR cookie consent implemented, though no explicit privacy policy or terms of service pages were found in the provided content. Overall, SBC News presents a professional, trustworthy, and content-rich platform with a solid technical foundation and good security posture. Strategic recommendations include enhancing security headers, publishing clear security and privacy policies, and conducting regular security audits to maintain and improve trust and compliance.

Scanned

NIS2 and GDPR posture

GDPR outside view
65/ 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. 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';…

  2. GDPR outside view

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

    • High

      No Privacy Policy found

      GDPR requires a clear and accessible privacy policy

      What to do: Add a comprehensive privacy policy page and link to it prominently

    • High

      Third-party services without privacy policy

      Detected services: Google Analytics, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, Cloudflare, Google APIs, Google Ads

      What to do: Document all third-party data sharing in your privacy policy

  3. 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 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 sbcnews.co.uk

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.

Billed monthly to your card. Cancel anytime. See sample alerts.

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
75
Security headers
65
Email security
75
DNS health
70
Network security
100
GDPR outside view
65
Average
75

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

SBC News operates as a specialized media outlet focused on the sports betting industry, targeting professionals and stakeholders in this sector. Its business model revolves around content publishing, advertising, and event promotion. The presence of multiple sister sites and partner domains indicates a diversified media network that enhances market reach and influence. The company leverages digital channels including social media and podcasts to engage its audience. Its longevity since 2013 and consistent domain registration support its credibility. The company appears to have a medium-sized operation with a strong brand presence and consistent content quality, positioning it as a key information source within its niche.

Security posture

The website demonstrates a mature security posture with HTTPS enforced and cookie consent mechanisms that respect user privacy preferences. The use of Matomo analytics with consent-based activation and blocking of scripts until consent is given reflects good privacy practices. No exposed sensitive data or vulnerable libraries were detected in the HTML content. However, the absence of explicit security headers such as Content-Security-Policy and X-Frame-Options suggests room for improvement. There is no publicly visible security policy or incident response contact, which could be a gap in transparency and readiness. Overall, the security posture is good but could be enhanced by implementing additional headers and publishing formal security documentation.

Recommendations

  1. Implement and enforce security headers including Content-Security-Policy, X-Frame-Options, and X-Content-Type-Options to mitigate common web vulnerabilities.
  2. Publish a comprehensive privacy policy and terms of service pages clearly accessible from the website footer or main navigation.
  3. Establish and publicize a security policy and incident response contact to improve transparency and readiness.
  4. Regularly update WordPress core, themes, and plugins to the latest versions to reduce vulnerability risks.
  5. Enhance accessibility features to improve compliance with standards and user experience for all visitors.
Site observations

Automated reading of the public site. Ratings are indicative.

Business

Company
SBC News
Description
SBC News provides in-depth news, analysis, knowledge, opinion and insight for the sports betting industry.
Key services
News reporting, Industry analysis, Opinion pieces, Insight articles, Webinars, Podcasts, Event coverage
Content quality
excellent
Branding
consistent

Technology

Stack
WordPress 6.8.2, jQuery, Matomo Analytics, Google Analytics, Google Tag Manager, Broadstreet Ads, Swiper.js, Photo Gallery plugin, Taqyeem plugin, WebToffee GDPR Cookie Consent plugin
Frameworks
WordPress
Platforms
Web
Performance
moderate
Mobile
good
Accessibility
basic
SEO
good

Security

Observed score
85/100
Good practices seen
  • HTTPS enforced
  • Cookie consent with blocking scripts until consent
  • Use of Matomo with cookie consent
  • No exposed sensitive data in HTML
  • No visible vulnerable libraries detected

Analytics and tracking

Services
Matomo, Google Analytics, Plausible
Tracking level
moderate
Privacy practices
good

Advertising

Ad networks
Broadstreet Ads, Google Adsense
Tracking pixels
Facebook Pixel, LinkedIn Insight Tag, Matomo
Marketing tools
Wisepops
Transparency
good

Site quality

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

Key observations

  1. Website is a professional media outlet focused on sports betting industry news and analysis.
  2. Content is rich, well-structured, and updated with recent news articles.
  3. Multiple sister sites and partner domains indicate a broad media network.
  4. Cookie consent and GDPR compliance mechanisms are implemented.
  5. Use of multiple analytics and advertising platforms with consent management.
  6. No signs of blocking or WAF interference; site fully accessible.
  7. No explicit security policies or incident response contacts found publicly.
  8. No privacy policy or terms of service pages explicitly detected in provided content.
  9. Strong branding consistency and professional design.
  10. No adult or NSFW content detected.
Technical notes

Notes

The website is built on WordPress 6.8.2, utilizing a variety of plugins for galleries, cookie consent, analytics, and advertising. It uses jQuery and modern JavaScript libraries such as Swiper.js for UI components. Hosting is provided by GoDaddy, a reputable provider. The site employs multiple analytics platforms including Matomo, Google Analytics, and Plausible, integrated with consent management. Advertising is managed via Broadstreet Ads and Google Adsense, with tracking pixels from Facebook and LinkedIn. The site is mobile optimized with responsive design and good SEO meta tags. Performance is moderate, with some potential for optimization in loading speed and accessibility compliance. Overall, the technical infrastructure is solid and supports the business needs effectively.
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. 74/100Medium27 findingsView report
Reviews of this site

Share your experience with sbcnews.co.uk. 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 sbcnews.co.uk.

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.