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Security report for vml.com

VML · Technology · United States

Low risk. 4 critical or high findings in Security headers, SSL/TLS and 1 other check.

Security score

76/100

Risk levelLow

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

VML is a global digital marketing and technology agency operating under the parent company WPP. The company offers a broad range of services including brand experience, commerce, consulting, customer experience, and technology transformation. The website reflects a mature enterprise with a strong market position and a focus on innovation and growth. Technically, the site employs modern analytics and consent management tools, ensuring GDPR-aligned user tracking. Security posture is good with HTTPS and consent mechanisms, though there is room for improvement in security headers and explicit security policies. The absence of WHOIS data is a notable anomaly but does not detract from the overall legitimacy indicated by the website content and parent company association.

Scanned

NIS2 and GDPR posture

GDPR outside view
88/ 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

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 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

  3. DNS health

    DNS sends visitors and email to the right servers. Misconfigured records can cause outages or let someone redirect your traffic.

    • High

      Domain Expires Soon

      Domain expires in 16 days

      What to do: Renew domain registration before expiration

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

Keep watching vml.com

This scan found 19 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.

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Full report

€39.90one-time

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  • 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
72
Security headers
45
Email security
85
DNS health
65
Network security
100
GDPR outside view
88
Average
76

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

VML targets enterprise clients seeking comprehensive digital marketing and technology solutions. Its market positioning is strengthened by award-winning projects and association with WPP, a major global communications company. The business model revolves around service delivery in technology transformation and marketing consulting. The website content and structure suggest a focus on innovation and client engagement, supported by multimedia case studies and insights. The company operates primarily in the technology sector with a global footprint, headquartered in the United States.

Security posture

The website demonstrates a solid security foundation with enforced HTTPS and a cookie consent mechanism via OneTrust, reflecting compliance with privacy regulations. However, the lack of visible security headers such as Content-Security-Policy and absence of a published security policy or incident response contacts indicate areas for enhancement. No vulnerabilities or exposed sensitive data were detected in the analyzed content. The missing WHOIS data raises a minor concern but is mitigated by the professional nature of the site and corporate backing. Overall, the security posture is good but could benefit from formalized policies and header implementations.

Recommendations

  1. Implement and publish a comprehensive privacy policy page accessible from the homepage.
  2. Add security headers including Content-Security-Policy, X-Frame-Options, and X-Content-Type-Options to enhance protection.
  3. Publish a security policy and incident response contact information to improve transparency and trust.
  4. Consider adding a vulnerability disclosure program or security.txt file to facilitate responsible reporting.
  5. Investigate and resolve the missing WHOIS data to ensure domain registration transparency.

Contact details published on the site

Addresses
Legal name
VML
Site observations

Automated reading of the public site. Ratings are indicative.

Business

Company
VML
Description
At VML, we are a beacon of innovation and growth in an ever-evolving world. Our heritage is built upon more than 300 years of combined experience and expertise, where creativity meets technology.
Key services
Brand Experience, Commerce, Consulting, Customer Experience, Technology Transformation, Health, B2B, Enterprise Solutions
Content quality
excellent
Branding
consistent

Technology

Stack
Google Analytics (gtag.js), Adobe Experience Platform (collect.js), OneTrust Cookie Consent, Cloudinary (media hosting), Tiny Slider (tns-slider)
Performance
moderate
Mobile
excellent
Accessibility
good
SEO
good

Security

Observed score
85/100
Good practices seen
  • HTTPS enforced
  • Consent management via OneTrust
  • Restricted Google Analytics consent settings

Analytics and tracking

Services
Google Analytics, Adobe Experience Platform
Tracking level
minimal
Privacy practices
good

Advertising

Tracking pixels
Adobe Experience Platform
Marketing tools
Adobe Experience Platform, OneTrust
Transparency
basic

Site quality

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

Key observations

  1. Website is fully accessible with rich content and multimedia.
  2. Strong branding and professional presentation consistent with a global marketing agency.
  3. No explicit privacy policy page detected in the provided HTML snippet.
  4. Cookie consent mechanism is implemented via OneTrust.
  5. No visible security.txt or vulnerability disclosure information.
  6. WHOIS data is missing, which is unusual and warrants further investigation.
  7. Contact information includes phone number and physical address in New York, USA.
  8. Use of modern tracking and analytics tools with consent restrictions.
  9. No signs of adult or questionable content.
Technical notes

Notes

The website uses a modern technology stack including Google Analytics (gtag.js), Adobe Experience Platform, and OneTrust for cookie consent management. Media assets are hosted on Cloudinary, supporting responsive images and video content. The site is mobile-optimized with good accessibility features and SEO meta tags. Performance is moderate, with potential improvements in loading speed and technical SEO. No CMS was explicitly detected. The site architecture supports clear navigation and user experience, with structured data enhancing search engine understanding.
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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