Skip to main content

Security report for viaa.nl

Hogeschool Viaa · Education · Netherlands

Medium risk. 5 critical or high findings in GDPR outside view and Security headers.

Security score

71/100

Risk levelMedium

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

Hogeschool Viaa is a Christian university of applied sciences based in Zwolle, Netherlands, offering a broad range of educational programs including associate degrees, bachelor, master, and post-hbo courses. The institution targets students and professionals seeking education in social and human sciences, positioning itself as a leading educational provider with recognized awards and a strong digital presence. The website reflects a professional, well-branded, and content-rich platform that supports its educational mission effectively. Technically, the site is built on WordPress with modern plugins and integrations such as LearnDash LMS, Google Tag Manager, and Iubenda for cookie compliance, indicating a mature digital infrastructure. Security posture is good with HTTPS enforced and cookie consent mechanisms in place, though some security headers could be improved and formal security policies are not publicly disclosed. Overall, the website is trustworthy, compliant with GDPR, and provides clear contact and business information, supporting its credibility as a legitimate educational institution.

Scanned

NIS2 and GDPR posture

GDPR outside view
55/ 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

5 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.

    • Critical

      EU business without adequate privacy measures

      EU businesses are subject to strict GDPR requirements

      What to do: Implement comprehensive GDPR compliance including privacy policy, cookie consent, and data protection measures

    • 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

  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 viaa.nl

This scan found 20 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
100
Security headers
15
Email security
85
DNS health
70
Network security
100
GDPR outside view
55
Average
71

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

The institution operates in the education sector with a medium-sized footprint and a focus on Christian values. Its business model centers on delivering accredited degree programs and professional training. The website's integration with multiple partner platforms (e.g., Onderwijs Online, SharePoint, Osiris) indicates a well-established ecosystem supporting academic and administrative functions. The presence of a webshop and active social media channels suggests diversified engagement and revenue streams. The domain registration data aligns with the institution's claims, reinforcing legitimacy. The institution's market position is strengthened by awards and comprehensive online resources, positioning it competitively within the Dutch higher education landscape.

Security posture

The website demonstrates a solid security foundation with HTTPS and cookie consent compliance. No critical vulnerabilities or exposed sensitive data were detected. However, the absence of explicit security policies, incident response contacts, and vulnerability disclosure mechanisms indicates room for improvement in transparency and preparedness. The use of third-party analytics and tracking pixels is managed with consent, aligning with privacy regulations. Security headers such as Content-Security-Policy and X-Frame-Options are not explicitly present, which could be enhanced to mitigate risks. Overall, the security posture is good but could benefit from formalized policies and additional technical controls.

Recommendations

  1. Implement comprehensive security headers including Content-Security-Policy, X-Frame-Options, and X-Content-Type-Options to enhance protection against common web attacks.
  2. Publish a dedicated security policy and incident response contact information to improve transparency and readiness.
  3. Establish a vulnerability disclosure program, potentially via a security.txt file, to encourage responsible reporting of security issues.
  4. Regularly audit and update third-party scripts and plugins to minimize risk from vulnerabilities.
  5. Enhance monitoring and validation of form inputs to prevent injection and other input-based attacks.

Contact details published on the site

Addresses
Legal name
Hogeschool Viaa
Site observations

Automated reading of the public site. Ratings are indicative.

Business

Company
Hogeschool Viaa
Description
Hogeschool Viaa is a Christian university of applied sciences located in Zwolle, Netherlands, offering various educational programs including associate degrees, bachelor, master, post-hbo, coaching, and training courses.
Key services
Associate degree programs, Bachelor degree programs, Master degree programs, Post-hbo education, Coaching and guidance, Cursussen en trainingen (courses and training)
Content quality
excellent
Branding
consistent

Technology

Stack
WordPress 6.6.2, Yoast SEO Premium, Google Tag Manager, Iubenda Cookie Solution, Gravity Forms, LearnDash LMS, jQuery, Typekit Fonts, Tidio Chat
Frameworks
WordPress, LearnDash LMS
Platforms
WordPress CMS
Performance
moderate
Mobile
good
Accessibility
good
SEO
excellent

Security

Observed score
85/100
Good practices seen
  • HTTPS enforced
  • Cookie consent with autoblocking scripts
  • No exposed sensitive data in HTML
  • Use of Google Tag Manager and TikTok pixel with consent
  • No visible vulnerable libraries

Analytics and tracking

Services
Google Analytics (via GTM), TikTok Analytics
Tracking level
moderate
Privacy practices
good

Advertising

Tracking pixels
TikTok Pixel
Marketing tools
TikTok Analytics, Iubenda Cookie Solution
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. Comprehensive privacy and cookie policies with consent mechanisms are implemented.
  3. Clear contact information including phone, email, and physical address is provided.
  4. Use of modern web technologies and CMS (WordPress) with SEO optimization.
  5. Social media presence on major platforms enhances trust and engagement.
  6. No visible security policy or incident response information publicly available.
  7. No vulnerability disclosure or security.txt file found.
  8. Good security posture with HTTPS and cookie consent but could improve security headers.
Technical notes

Notes

The website is built on a modern WordPress CMS platform with a well-maintained tech stack including Yoast SEO for optimization, LearnDash LMS for educational content delivery, and Iubenda for cookie compliance. The site uses asynchronous loading of scripts and fonts to optimize performance, though overall speed is moderate likely due to multiple external dependencies. Mobile optimization and accessibility are well addressed, with responsive design and localized date pickers. The integration of multiple external services and social media platforms indicates a mature digital ecosystem. Technical debt appears low, but continuous monitoring and updates are recommended to maintain security and performance.
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

Reviews of this site

Share your experience with viaa.nl. 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 viaa.nl.

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.