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Security report for stackoverflow.com

Stack Overflow · Technology · N/a

Low risk. 2 critical or high findings in SSL/TLS.

Security score

78/100

Risk levelLow

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

Stack Overflow is a globally recognized online community platform dedicated to professional and enthusiast programmers. Founded in 2003, it has grown to become the world's largest Q&A site for developers, offering a wide range of services including public Q&A, private team collaboration tools, advertising, and data licensing solutions. The platform targets developers and technologists seeking knowledge sharing and problem-solving resources. Technically, Stack Overflow employs a modern web technology stack including jQuery, custom UI frameworks, and Cloudflare for DNS and CDN services, ensuring fast and responsive user experiences across devices. Security posture is strong with HTTPS enforcement, clientTransferProhibited domain status, and consent management via OneTrust, although DNSSEC is not enabled, representing a minor security enhancement opportunity. Privacy compliance is robust with clear policies and GDPR adherence. Overall, the site demonstrates high professionalism, trustworthiness, and technical maturity.

Scanned

This is an earlier scan of stackoverflow.com. View the latest report

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

2 findings rated critical or high. Fix these first.

  1. 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 stackoverflow.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.

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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

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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
52
Security headers
60
Email security
85
DNS health
90
Network security
100
GDPR outside view
83
Average
78

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 stackoverflow.com, from OffSeq Breach.

Total records
101,709
Employees
3
Customers
101,654
Third parties
52
Weak passwords
6%

Latest record dated 2026-05-18 · 24 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 stackoverflow.com.

Select it in the checkout above.

Masked preview

  • –stackoverflow.com2026-05-18
  • –stackoverflow.com2025-07-20
  • –stackoverflow.com2025-07-20

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

Open in Breach(opens in a new tab)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

Stack Overflow operates in the technology sector as an essential entity providing knowledge sharing and community engagement services for developers worldwide. Its business model includes advertising, premium team collaboration products, and data licensing. The company maintains a strong market position as a leading developer community with a large user base and extensive content. Partnerships and related domains support authentication and meta-discussion functions. The platform's growth is supported by continuous innovation through its Labs initiative and a comprehensive ecosystem of products. While direct contact information is not publicly displayed, the site maintains transparency through legal and privacy documentation. The enterprise-scale operation and consistent branding reinforce its credibility and market leadership.

Security posture

Stack Overflow exhibits a mature security posture with enforced HTTPS, secure domain registration practices, and use of OAuth for authentication. The presence of a cookie consent mechanism aligns with privacy regulations. No critical vulnerabilities or exposed sensitive data were detected in the analyzed content. However, the absence of DNSSEC and a publicly visible security.txt or vulnerability disclosure page suggests areas for improvement in DNS security and coordinated vulnerability management. Incident response contact information is not readily available, which could be enhanced to improve security communication. Overall, the platform balances usability and security effectively, supporting a trusted environment for its users.

Recommendations

  1. Enable DNSSEC on the domain to strengthen DNS security and prevent spoofing.
  2. Publish a security.txt file to facilitate responsible vulnerability disclosure and improve transparency.
  3. Make incident response contact information more visible to enhance security communication.
  4. Regularly audit and update third-party scripts and libraries to mitigate potential vulnerabilities.
  5. Continue enhancing privacy compliance and user consent mechanisms in line with evolving regulations.
Site observations

Automated reading of the public site. Ratings are indicative.

Business

Company
Stack Overflow
Description
Q&A for professional and enthusiast programmers
Key services
Question and answer platform, Developer community engagement, Stack Overflow for Teams, Advertising, Knowledge Solutions (data licensing), Labs (knowledge sharing innovation)
Content quality
excellent
Branding
consistent

Technology

Stack
jQuery 3.7.1, Stacks UI framework, Webpack, Cloudflare DNS, Google Identity Services, OneTrust Cookie Consent
Frameworks
Stacks (Stack Overflow's own UI framework), jQuery UI
Platforms
Web
Performance
fast
Mobile
excellent
Accessibility
good
SEO
good

Security

Observed score
90/100
Good practices seen
  • HTTPS enforced
  • ClientTransferProhibited domain status
  • Use of OAuth for authentication
  • Consent management via OneTrust
  • No exposed sensitive data in HTML

Analytics and tracking

Services
Google Analytics
Tracking level
moderate
Privacy practices
good

Advertising

Ad networks
Google AdSense
Tracking pixels
Google Analytics (implied), Google Ads
Marketing tools
OneTrust Cookie Consent, Google Identity Services
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 challenge.
  2. Comprehensive privacy and cookie policies with consent mechanisms are present.
  3. Multiple sign-up and login forms with OAuth integration for Google and GitHub.
  4. Use of modern web technologies and frameworks.
  5. Strong branding and consistent user experience.
  6. No direct contact emails or phone numbers visible on the page.
  7. Advertising and analytics are implemented with transparency and compliance.
  8. No evidence of security.txt or explicit vulnerability disclosure page.
  9. No visible security incident response contact information.
Technical notes

Notes

The website is built on a robust and modern technical infrastructure leveraging jQuery, custom UI frameworks (Stacks), and Webpack for efficient asset bundling. Hosting and DNS services are provided by Cloudflare, ensuring performance and security benefits. The site is mobile-optimized with responsive design and accessibility features. SEO is supported through proper meta tags and structured data (JSON-LD). The use of OneTrust for cookie consent and Google Identity Services for authentication reflects adherence to best practices in user privacy and security. Performance is fast with CDN usage and optimized assets. Technical risks are minimal, with opportunities for further modernization including DNSSEC adoption and enhanced security disclosures.
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. 69/100 −9Medium21 findingsView report
  2. 78/100 −3Low26 findingsView report
  3. 81/100Low20 findingsView report
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