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Is dair-institute.org a Scam? Security Check Results - Distributed AI Research Institute Reviews

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Is dair-institute.org Safe? Security Analysis for Distributed AI Research Institute

Check if dair-institute.org is a scam or legitimate. Free security scan and reviews.

TechnologyN/asmall
Next.jsReactJavaScriptCSSSanity.io (CMS)+1 more
Analyzed 9/7/2025Completed 4:38:18 AM
60
Security Score
MEDIUM RISK

AI Summary

The Distributed AI Research Institute (DAIR) is a globally distributed non-profit organization focused on community-rooted AI research. The website presents a professional and well-structured platform highlighting their mission to ground AI research in lived experience and community needs. Their market position is that of an independent research institute combining academic, activist, and engineering expertise to challenge AI hype and imagine alternative futures. Technically, the website is built on modern frameworks including Next.js and React, with content managed via Sanity.io CMS. The site is performant, mobile-optimized, and accessible, with no visible errors or broken elements. External integrations include a fundraising widget from FundraiseUp, indicating active community support mechanisms. Security posture is good with HTTPS enforced and no visible sensitive data exposure. However, the absence of security headers and formal privacy or cookie policies indicates room for improvement in compliance and security best practices. No WHOIS data was retrievable, likely due to privacy protection, which is common and justified for non-profit entities. Overall, the website is trustworthy and professional but would benefit from enhanced privacy compliance, explicit contact information, and improved security headers to strengthen its security posture and user trust.

Detected Technologies

Next.jsReactJavaScriptCSSSanity.io (CMS)FundraiseUp (donation widget)

🧠AI Business Intelligence

Technology stack, business insights, and market analysis powered by AI.

Business Intelligence

Market & Strategic Analysis

DAIR operates as a non-profit research organization targeting academics, activists, engineers, and community stakeholders interested in ethical and community-centered AI development. Their business model revolves around research, publications, community engagement, and fundraising. The organization leverages partnerships and digital fundraising tools but does not publicly disclose parent or subsidiary relationships. Their market positioning emphasizes independent, critical AI research grounded in real-world community needs, differentiating them from commercial AI entities. Growth indicators include active content updates and fundraising integration, suggesting ongoing community support and engagement.

Security Posture Analysis

Comprehensive Security Assessment

The website demonstrates a mature security posture with HTTPS enabled and no visible exposure of sensitive data. The use of modern web frameworks reduces common vulnerabilities. However, the lack of security headers such as Content Security Policy (CSP), HTTP Strict Transport Security (HSTS), and X-Frame-Options reduces defense-in-depth. No explicit incident response or security contact information is provided, which could hinder timely vulnerability reporting and response. Privacy and cookie policies are absent, indicating compliance gaps with GDPR and other privacy regulations. Overall, the security culture appears cautious but could be improved by formalizing policies and enhancing technical controls.

Strategic Recommendations

Priority Actions for Security Improvement

1

Implement and publish comprehensive privacy and cookie policies to improve GDPR compliance.

Observations

AI-powered comprehensive website and business analysis.

AI-Enhanced Website Analysis

Business Insights

Company:

Distributed AI Research Institute

Description:

The Distributed AI Research Institute is a globally distributed organization of academics, activists, and engineers conducting community-rooted research.

Key Services:
Community-rooted AI researchAcademic and activist collaborationPublications and projects on AIEducational and media content
Content Quality:

excellent

Branding:

consistent

Technical Stack

Technologies:
Next.jsReactJavaScriptCSSSanity.io (CMS)FundraiseUp (donation widget)
Frameworks:
Next.jsReact
Performance:

fast

Mobile:

excellent

Accessibility:

good

SEO:

good

Security Assessment

Security Score:
85/100
Best Practices:
  • HTTPS enforced
  • No visible exposed sensitive data
  • Use of modern frameworks

Analytics & Tracking

Tracking Level:minimal
Privacy Compliance:poor

Advertising & Marketing

Tracking Pixels:
FundraiseUp
Marketing Tools:
FundraiseUp donation widget
Transparency Level:basic

Website Quality Assessment

Design Quality:excellent
User Experience:excellent
Content Relevance:excellent
Navigation Clarity:excellent
Professionalism:excellent
Trustworthiness:high

Key Observations

1

Website is fully accessible with rich content and professional design.

🛡️Security Headers

HTTP security headers analysis and recommendations.

Security Headers

HTTP security headers analysis

30/100
Score

Missing X-Frame-Options header

HIGH

Prevents clickjacking attacks

Missing X-Content-Type-Options header

MEDIUM

Prevents MIME type sniffing

Missing Content-Security-Policy header

HIGH

Controls resources the browser is allowed to load

Missing X-XSS-Protection header

MEDIUM

Legacy XSS protection (deprecated but still recommended)

Missing Referrer-Policy header

LOW

Controls referrer information sent with requests

Missing Permissions-Policy header

MEDIUM

Controls browser features and APIs

Sensitive data may be cached

LOW

Cache-Control header should include "no-store" for sensitive pages

👤GDPR Compliance

Privacy and data protection assessment under GDPR regulations.

GDPR Compliance

Privacy and data protection assessment

35/100
Score

No Privacy Policy found

HIGH

GDPR requires a clear and accessible privacy policy

No Cookie Policy found

HIGH

GDPR requires clear information about cookie usage

No Cookie Consent Banner found

HIGH

GDPR requires explicit consent for non-essential cookies

Third-party services without privacy policy

HIGH

Detected services: Twitter, LinkedIn

GDPR Compliance Analysis

Privacy Policy0% confidence
Cookie Policy0% confidence
Contact Information Found90% confidence
emailphone

🛡️NIS2 Compliance

Network & Information Security Directive compliance assessment.

NIS2 Compliance

Network & Information Security Directive

22/100
Score

No information security framework found

HIGH

NIS2 requires documented cybersecurity and information security measures

No vulnerability disclosure policy

MEDIUM

NIS2 encourages coordinated vulnerability disclosure

No security policy documentation found

HIGH

NIS2 requires documented cybersecurity governance and risk management

No incident response procedures found

HIGH

NIS2 requires documented incident response and business continuity plans

No business continuity planning found

MEDIUM

NIS2 emphasizes operational resilience and business continuity

No security contact information

HIGH

NIS2 requires clear incident reporting channels

No vulnerability reporting mechanism

MEDIUM

Clear vulnerability reporting supports coordinated disclosure

📧Email Security

SPF, DKIM, and DMARC validation and email security assessment.

Email Security

SPF, DKIM, and DMARC validation

75/100
Score

DMARC not enforcing

MEDIUM

DMARC policy is set to "none"

No BIMI Record

LOW

BIMI displays brand logos in email clients

No MTA-STS Policy

MEDIUM

MTA-STS enforces TLS for email delivery

No TLS-RPT Record

LOW

TLS-RPT provides reporting for email TLS issues

SPF
Sender Policy Framework
DKIM
DomainKeys Identified Mail
DMARC
Domain-based Message Authentication
MX Records
Mail Exchange Records
BIMI
Brand Indicators
MTA-STS
Mail Transfer Agent Security
TLS-RPT
TLS Reporting
DNSSEC
DNS Security
SPF Details
Record:
v=spf1 ip4:151.139.71.6 include:_spf.google.com include:mailgun.org include:servers.mcsv.net ~all
DNS Lookups:3/10
Policy:~all
DKIM Selectors Found
Selector:google(1416-bit rsa)
Selector:k1(1296-bit rsa)
Selector:k2(1416-bit rsa)
DMARC Details
Policy:none
Aggregate Reports:a7e37e7b7ec544c78ca9a8efad2e641e@dmarc-reports.cloudflare.net

🏆SSL/TLS Security

Certificate validity and encryption analysis.

SSL/TLS Security

Certificate validity and encryption analysis

62/100
Score

Weak Protocols Supported

HIGH

Server supports weak protocols: TLSv1.1

OCSP Stapling Not Enabled

LOW

OCSP stapling improves performance and privacy

Certificate Transparency Not Implemented

LOW

Certificate is not logged in Certificate Transparency logs

SSL Certificate Expires Soon

HIGH

SSL certificate expires in 29 days

Partial SSL/TLS Assessment

LOW

Completed 3 of 4 security checks due to time constraints

Protocol Support

TLSv1.3TLSv1.2TLSv1.1

OCSP Status

OCSP Stapling Disabled

📊DNS Health

DNS configuration and security assessment.

DNS Health

DNS configuration and security assessment

75/100
Score

DNSSEC Not Enabled

MEDIUM

DNSSEC is not configured for this domain

CAA Records Not Configured

LOW

Certificate Authority Authorization (CAA) records not found

Domain Delete Lock Not Enabled

LOW

Domain can be deleted without additional verification

DMARC Policy Set to None

LOW

DMARC is configured but not enforcing any policy

Domain Registration Details

Domain Age
4 years(established)
Expiry Risk
low(263 days)
Protection Level
basicDNSSEC OFF

DNS Records

A Records:76.76.21.21
Name Servers:
elsa.ns.cloudflare.com
sterling.ns.cloudflare.com
MX Records:
1: aspmx.l.google.com
5: alt1.aspmx.l.google.com
5: alt2.aspmx.l.google.com
10: alt3.aspmx.l.google.com
10: alt4.aspmx.l.google.com
SOA:Serial: 2381135616, TTL: 1800s

DNSSEC Status

DNSSEC Not Enabled

DNS Performance

Resolution Time:86ms

SPF Analysis

SPF Record:
v=spf1 ip4:151.139.71.6 include:_spf.google.com include:mailgun.org include:servers.mcsv.net ~all

Network Security

Port scanning and network exposure analysis.

Network Security

Port scanning and network exposure analysis

100/100
Score

Good Network Security Posture

LOW

No unnecessary services detected on common risky ports

🔧Technical Analysis

Detailed technical findings and analysis from AI assessment.

Technical Analysis

Comprehensive security assessment findings

Additional Findings

The website is built using Next.js and React, indicating a modern and scalable frontend architecture. Content is managed through Sanity.io, a headless CMS, enabling flexible content updates. The site uses FundraiseUp for donation processing, integrating third-party fundraising capabilities. Performance is optimized with preloading of fonts and images, responsive design, and accessibility features such as skip links and focus outlines. No major technical debt or deprecated technologies were detected. Opportunities exist to enhance security headers and formalize privacy compliance mechanisms to reduce risk and improve user trust.
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