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Security report for transitionnetwork.org

Transition Network international · Non-profit · United Kingdom

High risk. 9 critical or high findings in Network security, Security headers and 2 other checks.

Security score

48/100

Risk levelHigh

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

Transition Network international is a well-established non-profit organization founded in 2007, focused on uniting communities globally to foster sustainability, reduce fossil fuel use, and strengthen local economies. The organization operates an international network active in 69 countries, providing training, resources, and community support to facilitate positive environmental and social change. Their website reflects a professional and consistent brand presence, targeting individuals and groups interested in community resilience and sustainable futures. Technically, the website is built on WordPress with modern plugins such as Elementor, Contact Form 7, and TranslatePress for multilingual support. It employs Matomo for analytics and hCaptcha for form security, hosted by Gandi SAS. The site demonstrates good mobile optimization, accessibility, and SEO practices, though performance is moderate. Security measures include HTTPS enforcement and domain transfer protection, but DNSSEC is not enabled, and security headers are not explicitly observed. From a security perspective, the site shows a mature posture with no critical vulnerabilities detected. However, improvements could be made by enabling DNSSEC, adding security headers, implementing a cookie consent mechanism, and publishing a vulnerability disclosure policy. Contact information is clear, but no dedicated security or incident response contacts are provided. Overall, the website is trustworthy, professionally maintained, and compliant with GDPR principles, though minor enhancements in security and privacy compliance would strengthen its posture. The domain registration data aligns well with the organization's claims, supporting legitimacy and long-term operation.

Scanned

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

9 findings rated critical or high. Fix these first.

  1. Network security

    Services reachable from the internet are the first thing attackers probe. Anything open that does not need to be should be closed.

    • Critical

      Critical Service Exposed: MySQL

      Port 3306 (MySQL) is publicly accessible - MySQL - Database server

      What to do: Immediately restrict access to MySQL using firewall or VPN

      • NIS2 21(2)(e)
      • IR 2024/2690 6.7.2(f): Implementing Regulation (EU) 2024/2690, Annex point 6.7.2(f): Network security
      • NIST CM-7: NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5 CM-7: Least Functionality
      • NIST SC-7: NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5 SC-7: Boundary Protection
    • Critical

      Critical Service Exposed: PostgreSQL

      Port 5432 (PostgreSQL) is publicly accessible - PostgreSQL - Database server

      What to do: Immediately restrict access to PostgreSQL using firewall or VPN

      • NIS2 21(2)(e)
      • IR 2024/2690 6.7.2(f): Implementing Regulation (EU) 2024/2690, Annex point 6.7.2(f): Network security
      • NIST CM-7: NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5 CM-7: Least Functionality
      • NIST SC-7: NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5 SC-7: Boundary Protection

  2. 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';…

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

Keep watching transitionnetwork.org

This scan found 30 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

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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
15
Email security
70
DNS health
75
Network security
0
GDPR outside view
53
Average
48

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 · found on this site
  • 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

Transition Network international holds a strong market position as a global non-profit network facilitating community-led sustainability initiatives. Their competitive advantage lies in their extensive international reach, active community groups, and comprehensive training programs. The business model focuses on community empowerment rather than commercial revenue, supported by donations and grants. Target customers include community organizers, activists, and individuals seeking sustainable living practices. Growth indicators include active groups in 69 countries and over 12,000 participants. The organization maintains partnerships with related domains such as transition-space.org and transitionmovement.org, enhancing their ecosystem. Strategic observations highlight a focus on education, cultural transformation, and community resilience as core operational pillars.

Security posture

The security maturity level of the website is moderate to good. HTTPS is enforced, and domain transfer protection is active, reducing risks of domain hijacking. The use of hCaptcha on forms adds protection against automated abuse. However, the absence of DNSSEC and security headers like Content-Security-Policy or X-Frame-Options represents gaps that could be exploited. No incident response or vulnerability disclosure information is publicly available, which limits transparency and preparedness. GDPR compliance is indicated by the presence of a privacy policy, but the lack of a cookie consent mechanism is a compliance gap. Overall, the security culture appears cautious but could benefit from formalizing policies and enhancing technical controls.

Recommendations

  1. Enable DNSSEC on the domain to secure DNS queries and prevent spoofing.
  2. Implement standard security headers such as Content-Security-Policy, X-Frame-Options, and Strict-Transport-Security.
  3. Add a cookie consent banner or mechanism to comply fully with GDPR cookie regulations.
  4. Publish a security.txt file and provide clear incident response contact information to improve vulnerability disclosure and response.
  5. Regularly audit third-party plugins and scripts to ensure no vulnerable libraries are in use.

Contact details published on the site

Addresses
Legal name
BSN Associates Ltd
Registration number
06135675
Site observations

Automated reading of the public site. Ratings are indicative.

Business

Company
Transition Network international
Description
International network of communities in 67 countries. It envisions a world where every individual can become part of a supportive community.
Key services
Community group support, Training and education, Resource provision, Event organization
Content quality
excellent
Branding
consistent

Technology

Stack
WordPress, Elementor, Contact Form 7, TranslatePress, Matomo Analytics, hCaptcha
Frameworks
Rank Math SEO
Platforms
WordPress CMS
Performance
moderate
Mobile
good
Accessibility
good
SEO
good

Security

Observed score
75/100
Good practices seen
  • HTTPS enforced
  • Client transfer prohibited domain status
  • Use of hCaptcha for forms

Analytics and tracking

Services
Matomo
Tracking level
moderate
Privacy practices
basic

Advertising

Tracking pixels
Matomo
Marketing tools
Rank Math SEO, BetterLinks
Transparency
basic

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. Content is rich and relevant to the organization's mission.
  3. Multiple language support is implemented.
  4. Use of modern web technologies and SEO best practices.
  5. No signs of malicious or suspicious content.
  6. Contact information is clearly provided.
  7. No explicit cookie consent mechanism detected.
  8. Security headers are not explicitly visible in provided data.
  9. DNSSEC is not enabled, which is a minor security gap.
Technical notes

Notes

The website uses a modern WordPress CMS with Elementor for page building and Contact Form 7 for form management. Multilingual support is provided by TranslatePress. Analytics are handled by Matomo, a privacy-focused tool. The site loads external resources from reputable CDNs and uses hCaptcha for bot protection. Performance is moderate, likely due to the use of multiple plugins and embedded iframes for news, events, and resources. Accessibility features are implemented, including skip links and an accessibility widget. SEO is enhanced by Rank Math plugin and structured data in JSON-LD format. Hosting is provided by Gandi SAS, a reputable registrar and hosting provider. The technical stack is robust but could be optimized for faster load times and enhanced security headers.
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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