Is openlibhums.org Safe? Security Analysis for Open Library of Humanities
Check if openlibhums.org is a scam or legitimate. Free security scan and reviews.
AI Summary
The Open Library of Humanities is a reputable, award-winning non-profit academic publisher focused on providing open-access humanities scholarship. Affiliated with Birkbeck, University of London, it operates a sustainable diamond open-access business model funded by academic and public libraries worldwide. The website reflects a mature digital presence with excellent content quality, clear navigation, and strong branding consistency. Technically, it employs modern web technologies including Django, JavaScript libraries, and an open-source publishing platform, ensuring good performance and mobile optimization. Security posture is strong with HTTPS and secure forms, though explicit security headers and policies could be improved. Privacy compliance is good with a clear privacy policy, but lacks a cookie consent mechanism. Overall, the site is trustworthy and professionally maintained, with no signs of malicious activity or suspicious domains.
Detected Technologies
🧠AI Business Intelligence
Technology stack, business insights, and market analysis powered by AI.
Business Intelligence
Market & Strategic Analysis
The OLH holds a strong market position in the academic publishing sector, particularly in humanities open access. Its business model avoids author fees, relying on library consortia funding, which differentiates it from many commercial publishers. The organization targets academics, researchers, librarians, and authors, emphasizing community ownership and academic-led scholarship. Partnerships with Birkbeck University and use of open-source software enhance credibility and operational efficiency. Growth indicators include multiple featured journals and active community engagement. The absence of direct contact emails suggests a preference for controlled communication channels via forms and social media.
Security Posture Analysis
Comprehensive Security Assessment
The website demonstrates a mature security posture with enforced HTTPS, secure form handling, and no visible sensitive data exposure. However, the absence of explicit security headers such as Content-Security-Policy and lack of a published security policy or incident response contacts represent areas for improvement. No vulnerable or outdated libraries were detected. Privacy compliance is generally good, but the lack of a cookie consent mechanism may pose GDPR compliance risks. Incident response readiness and vulnerability disclosure mechanisms are not evident, which could impact trust in security incident handling.
Strategic Recommendations
Priority Actions for Security Improvement
Implement and document comprehensive security headers including Content-Security-Policy, X-Frame-Options, and Referrer-Policy.
✨Observations
AI-powered comprehensive website and business analysis.
AI-Enhanced Website Analysis
Business Insights
Open Library of Humanities
The Open Library of Humanities is an award-winning open-access publisher of internationally leading academic scholarship. Their mission is to support and extend open access to scholarship in the humanities – for free, for everyone, for ever. They aim to liberate university research from commercial control and believe scholarship should be academic-led and community-owned.
excellent
consistent
Technical Stack
fast
excellent
good
good
Security Assessment
- HTTPS enforced
- No exposed sensitive data in HTML
- Secure forms with POST method
- No vulnerable libraries detected
Analytics & Tracking
Advertising & Marketing
Website Quality Assessment
Key Observations
Website is fully accessible with rich content and navigation
🛡️Security Headers
HTTP security headers analysis and recommendations.
Security Headers
HTTP security headers analysis
Missing Strict-Transport-Security header
HIGHForces HTTPS connections
Missing Content-Security-Policy header
HIGHControls resources the browser is allowed to load
Missing X-XSS-Protection header
MEDIUMLegacy XSS protection (deprecated but still recommended)
Weak Referrer-Policy configuration
LOWCurrent value: "no-referrer-when-downgrade"
Sensitive data may be cached
LOWCache-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
No Cookie Policy found
HIGHGDPR requires clear information about cookie usage
No Cookie Consent Banner found
HIGHGDPR requires explicit consent for non-essential cookies
No Data Protection Officer mentioned
LOWLarge organizations may need to designate a DPO under GDPR
Privacy policy may not be GDPR compliant
MEDIUMPrivacy policy lacks explicit GDPR compliance elements
GDPR Compliance Analysis
🛡️NIS2 Compliance
Network & Information Security Directive compliance assessment.
NIS2 Compliance
Network & Information Security Directive
No information security framework found
HIGHNIS2 requires documented cybersecurity and information security measures
No vulnerability disclosure policy
MEDIUMNIS2 encourages coordinated vulnerability disclosure
No security policy documentation found
HIGHNIS2 requires documented cybersecurity governance and risk management
No incident response procedures found
HIGHNIS2 requires documented incident response and business continuity plans
No business continuity planning found
MEDIUMNIS2 emphasizes operational resilience and business continuity
No security contact information
HIGHNIS2 requires clear incident reporting channels
No vulnerability reporting mechanism
MEDIUMClear vulnerability reporting supports coordinated disclosure
No NIS2 reference found
LOWConsider explicitly mentioning NIS2 compliance efforts
📧Email Security
SPF, DKIM, and DMARC validation and email security assessment.
Email Security
SPF, DKIM, and DMARC validation
No DMARC record found
HIGHDMARC provides email authentication and reporting
No DKIM record found
MEDIUMDKIM adds cryptographic signatures to emails
SPF Details
DMARC Details
MTA-STS Details
🏆SSL/TLS Security
Certificate validity and encryption analysis.
SSL/TLS Security
Certificate validity and encryption analysis
Weak Protocols Supported
HIGHServer supports weak protocols: TLSv1.1
OCSP Stapling Not Enabled
LOWOCSP stapling improves performance and privacy
Certificate Transparency Not Implemented
LOWCertificate is not logged in Certificate Transparency logs
SSL Certificate Expires Within 90 Days
MEDIUMSSL certificate expires in 57 days
Mixed Content Detected
MEDIUM1 resources loaded over insecure HTTP
Partial SSL/TLS Assessment
LOWCompleted 3 of 4 security checks due to time constraints
Protocol Support
OCSP Status
📊DNS Health
DNS configuration and security assessment.
DNS Health
DNS configuration and security assessment
DNSSEC Not Enabled
MEDIUMDNSSEC is not configured for this domain
CAA Records Not Configured
LOWCertificate Authority Authorization (CAA) records not found
Domain Registration Details
- •Privacy/proxy registration detected
DNS Records
DNSSEC Status
DNS Performance
SPF Analysis
⚡Network Security
Port scanning and network exposure analysis.
Network Security
Port scanning and network exposure analysis
Service Exposed: SSH
MEDIUMPort 22 (SSH) is publicly accessible - SSH - Secure but can be brute-forced
🔧Technical Analysis
Detailed technical findings and analysis from AI assessment.
Technical Analysis
Comprehensive security assessment findings