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Security report for smartsteuer.de

smartsteuer GmbH · Finance · Germany

Medium risk. 3 critical or high findings in Security headers and SSL/TLS.

Security score

69/100

Risk levelMedium

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

smartsteuer GmbH operates a well-established online tax declaration platform targeting German taxpayers including employees, self-employed individuals, students, and pensioners. The service offers an intuitive, step-by-step tax filing experience with TÜV certifications and integration options such as Lexware Office. The company positions itself as a user-friendly alternative to traditional tax filing methods, emphasizing ease of use and maximizing tax refunds. Technically, the website is built on WordPress with modern plugins and libraries, hosted on sysEleven infrastructure, and optimized for performance and mobile use. Security posture is strong with HTTPS, cookie consent management, and TÜV certifications, though some security headers could be improved. Privacy compliance is robust with clear policies and consent mechanisms. Overall, smartsteuer demonstrates a mature digital presence with high trustworthiness and professional business operations.

Scanned

NIS2 and GDPR posture

GDPR outside view
83/ 100 · Low
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

3 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 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';…
  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

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

Keep watching smartsteuer.de

This scan found 24 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
72
Security headers
30
Email security
70
DNS health
60
Network security
100
GDPR outside view
83
Average
69

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 smartsteuer.de, from OffSeq Breach.

Total records
9,691
Employees
0
Customers
9,691
Third parties
0
Weak passwords
5%

153 subdomains affected

See the 10 newest leaked credentials

A one-off add-on to this report that lists the most recent identifier and password pairs OffSeq Breach holds for smartsteuer.de.

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Breach keeps ingesting new leaks, so these numbers can grow between scans.

Technical appendix

Business context, site observations and technical notes gathered during the scan, and the standards behind each reference.

Business context

Business profile

smartsteuer GmbH holds a strong market position in the German online tax filing sector, leveraging TÜV certifications and positive customer feedback to build trust. The business model is SaaS with pay-on-submission pricing, targeting a broad demographic from students to retirees. Partnerships with Lexware and Haufe Group enhance product offerings and market reach. The company benefits from a comprehensive digital marketing and analytics ecosystem, enabling targeted advertising and user engagement. Growth indicators include multi-year domain age, extensive content, and active social media presence. Strategic observations suggest continued focus on compliance, user experience, and integration with financial software to maintain competitive advantage.

Security posture

The website exhibits a mature security posture with enforced HTTPS, cookie consent via Cookiebot, and TÜV certifications indicating adherence to data protection standards. No critical vulnerabilities or exposed sensitive data were detected. However, the absence of explicit security headers like Content-Security-Policy and X-Frame-Options suggests room for improvement. Incident response and vulnerability disclosure mechanisms are not publicly documented, which could be enhanced to align with best practices. Overall, the security measures are adequate for the business type, supporting user trust and regulatory compliance.

Recommendations

  1. Implement comprehensive security headers including Content-Security-Policy, X-Frame-Options, and X-Content-Type-Options to mitigate common web attacks.
  2. Publish a security.txt file to facilitate responsible vulnerability disclosure and improve transparency.
  3. Regularly audit and update third-party scripts and plugins to minimize risk from vulnerabilities.
  4. Enhance incident response documentation and provide clear security contact channels.
  5. Continue to monitor and optimize privacy compliance in line with evolving GDPR and related regulations.
Site observations

Automated reading of the public site. Ratings are indicative.

Business

Company
smartsteuer GmbH
Description
Online tax declaration service for 2024, enabling users to complete their tax returns easily and secure average refunds of 1,328 €. TÜV certified and user-friendly.
Key services
Income tax declaration, VAT declaration, Trade tax declaration, Digital submission to tax authorities, Integration with Lexware Office
Content quality
excellent
Branding
consistent

Technology

Stack
WordPress 6.8.3, Yoast SEO Premium, jQuery, Rate My Post plugin, Table of Contents Plus plugin, Simple Lightbox, Advanced Responsive Video Embedder, Cookiebot consent management, Google Tag Manager, Smartsteuer UI library
Frameworks
WordPress
Platforms
Web
Performance
fast
Mobile
excellent
Accessibility
good
SEO
excellent

Security

Observed score
85/100
Good practices seen
  • HTTPS enforced
  • Cookie consent management with Cookiebot
  • Session cookies with appropriate scope
  • No exposed sensitive data in HTML
  • Use of security and privacy certifications (TÜV)

Analytics and tracking

Services
Google Analytics, Adobe Analytics, Outbrain
Tracking level
extensive
Privacy practices
good

Advertising

Ad networks
Google DoubleClick, Facebook Ads, Amazon Advertising, The Trade Desk, Appnexus, Adform, Microsoft Advertising
Tracking pixels
Cookiebot, Facebook Pixel, Outbrain, YouTube, Adobe Analytics
Marketing tools
Cookiebot, Rate My Post plugin
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 user privacy and cookie consent management.
  3. Multiple trust seals and certifications displayed.
  4. Comprehensive FAQ and customer testimonials enhance credibility.
  5. Integration with third-party services for analytics and marketing is extensive but managed with consent.
  6. No signs of malicious or suspicious content.
  7. Business information is transparent and consistent.
Technical notes

Notes

The website leverages a modern WordPress CMS with a suite of plugins for SEO, UI, analytics, and cookie management. Hosting on sysEleven provides reliable infrastructure. The tech stack includes jQuery, Yoast SEO Premium, Cookiebot, and custom smartsteuer UI components. Performance is optimized with preloading fonts, responsive design, and CDN usage. Accessibility and SEO are well addressed through semantic HTML, meta tags, and structured data (JSON-LD). Technical risks are low but depend on maintaining plugin updates and security best practices. Opportunities exist to enhance security headers and incident response capabilities to further strengthen the technical foundation.
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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