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Is propublica.org a Scam? Security Check Results - ProPublica Reviews

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Is propublica.org Safe? Security Analysis for ProPublica

Check if propublica.org is a scam or legitimate. Free security scan and reviews.

MediaUnited Statesmedium
JavaScriptGoogle AnalyticsGoogle Tag ManagerreCAPTCHAParsely+2 more
Analyzed 9/4/2025Completed 11:41:26 PM
66
Security Score
MEDIUM RISK

AI Summary

ProPublica is a reputable independent non-profit newsroom specializing in investigative journalism and news in the public interest. The organization maintains a strong market position as a leading investigative media outlet with a focus on transparency and accountability. Their business model relies on donations and partnerships with local reporting networks and other media organizations. Technically, the website employs modern web technologies including Svelte, Google Analytics, and Parsely for analytics and content management, with good performance and mobile optimization. Security posture is strong with HTTPS enforcement, security headers, and use of reCAPTCHA, although no explicit security policy or incident response information is published. Privacy compliance is well addressed with comprehensive privacy and cookie policies and consent mechanisms. Overall, the website is professional, trustworthy, and well-maintained, with no signs of blocking or WAF interference.

Detected Technologies

JavaScriptGoogle AnalyticsGoogle Tag ManagerreCAPTCHAParselyLazySizesSvelte (frontend framework)

🧠AI Business Intelligence

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

Business Intelligence

Market & Strategic Analysis

ProPublica operates in the media sector as a non-profit investigative journalism organization. It leverages partnerships with regional news outlets and collaborates with other media entities to expand its reach. The organization targets a general audience interested in in-depth news and investigative reports. Revenue streams primarily come from donations, as evidenced by prominent donation calls to action. The website's content quality and branding consistency reinforce its credibility and market leadership. The presence of multiple social media channels and external partnerships indicates a mature digital ecosystem supporting its mission.

Extracted Contact Information

Marketing Intelligence Data

Email Addresses (1)

i*****@propublica.org

Company Registration

Registration Number:

Chamber of Commerce

Security Posture Analysis

Comprehensive Security Assessment

The website demonstrates a mature security posture with HTTPS enforced site-wide, presence of key security headers such as Content Security Policy, Strict-Transport-Security, and X-Frame-Options. Use of Google reCAPTCHA on forms helps mitigate automated abuse. No exposed sensitive data or vulnerable libraries were detected in the analysis. However, the absence of a dedicated security policy page and incident response contact information represents a gap in transparency and readiness communication. Publishing a vulnerability disclosure policy or security.txt file would further enhance trust and security maturity.

Strategic Recommendations

Priority Actions for Security Improvement

1

Publish a dedicated security policy page outlining security practices and commitments.

Observations

AI-powered comprehensive website and business analysis.

AI-Enhanced Website Analysis

Business Insights

Company:

ProPublica

Description:

ProPublica is an independent, non-profit newsroom that produces investigative journalism in the public interest.

Key Services:
Investigative journalismNews reportingData journalismLocal reporting network
Content Quality:

excellent

Branding:

consistent

Technical Stack

Technologies:
JavaScriptGoogle AnalyticsGoogle Tag ManagerreCAPTCHAParselyLazySizesSvelte (frontend framework)
Frameworks:
Svelte
Performance:

fast

Mobile:

excellent

Accessibility:

good

SEO:

good

Security Assessment

Security Score:
90/100
Best Practices:
  • HTTPS enforced
  • Use of reCAPTCHA for forms
  • Content Security Policy present
  • No exposed sensitive data detected

Analytics & Tracking

Services:
Google AnalyticsParsely
Tracking Level:moderate
Privacy Compliance:good

Advertising & Marketing

Ad Networks:
htlbid.com
Tracking Pixels:
Parsely
Marketing Tools:
Parsely
Transparency Level:good

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 no blocking or WAF challenges.

🛡️Security Headers

HTTP security headers analysis and recommendations.

Security Headers

HTTP security headers analysis

45/100
Score

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

53/100
Score

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

No Data Protection Officer mentioned

LOW

Large organizations may need to designate a DPO under GDPR

Privacy policy may not be GDPR compliant

MEDIUM

Privacy policy lacks explicit GDPR compliance elements

GDPR Compliance Analysis

Privacy Policy85% confidence
Cookie Policy0% confidence
Contact Information Found90% confidence
emailphone

🛡️NIS2 Compliance

Network & Information Security Directive compliance assessment.

NIS2 Compliance

Network & Information Security Directive

17/100
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

No NIS2 reference found

LOW

Consider explicitly mentioning NIS2 compliance efforts

📧Email Security

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

Email Security

SPF, DKIM, and DMARC validation

80/100
Score

Complex SPF record

LOW

Too many include statements can cause lookup limits

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 include:amazonses.com include:mailgun.org include:_spf.google.com include:_spf.salesforce.com include:mta.salesforce.com include:aspmx.sailthru.com ~all
DNS Lookups:6/10
Policy:~all
DKIM Selectors Found
Selector:google(1408-bit rsa)
Selector:k2(1416-bit rsa)
Selector:selector1(1416-bit rsa)
Selector:selector2(1296-bit rsa)
DMARC Details
Policy:quarantine
Subdomain Policy:none
Aggregate Reports:re+a94fe8404527@inbound.dmarcdigests.com

🏆SSL/TLS Security

Certificate validity and encryption analysis.

SSL/TLS Security

Certificate validity and encryption analysis

65/100
Score

SSL Certificate Expires Within 90 Days

MEDIUM

SSL certificate expires in 43 days

Weak SSL Key Length

HIGH

SSL certificate uses 256-bit key, which is considered weak

Mixed Content Detected

MEDIUM

3 resources loaded over insecure HTTP

Partial SSL/TLS Assessment

LOW

Completed 2 of 4 security checks due to time constraints

Certificate Details

Subject:www.propublica.org
Issuer:WE1
Valid Until:10/18/2025 (43 days)
SANs:www.propublica.org

OCSP Status

OCSP Stapling Disabled

📊DNS Health

DNS configuration and security assessment.

DNS Health

DNS configuration and security assessment

80/100
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

Domain Registration Details

Domain Age
17 years(mature)
Expiry Risk
none(774 days)
Protection Level
basicDNSSEC OFF

DNS Records

A Records:54.161.120.150, 52.87.36.248, 34.226.7.220, 34.237.101.250, 3.233.142.92
AAAA Records:2600:1f18:12d2:f300:6759:be80:51f8:b58b, 2600:1f18:12d2:f304:1ec8:9a06:586f:56e7, 2600:1f18:12d2:f301:ce9f:f28c:ce37:1fb3, 2600:1f18:12d2:f302:7a46:5:2ada:4ac3, 2600:1f18:12d2:f303:14bf:7a7e:b56c:90e3
Name Servers:
ns-1190.awsdns-20.org
ns-1885.awsdns-43.co.uk
ns-406.awsdns-50.com
ns-607.awsdns-11.net
MX Records:
5: alt2.aspmx.l.google.com
1: aspmx.l.google.com
10: alt3.aspmx.l.google.com
10: alt4.aspmx.l.google.com
5: alt1.aspmx.l.google.com
SOA:Serial: 1, TTL: 86400s

DNSSEC Status

DNSSEC Not Enabled

DNS Performance

Resolution Time:51ms

SPF Analysis

SPF Record:
v=spf1 include:amazonses.com include:mailgun.org include:_spf.google.com include:_spf.salesforce.com include:mta.salesforce.com include:aspmx.sailthru.com ~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 uses a modern technology stack including the Svelte framework for frontend rendering, lazy loading of images with LazySizes, and analytics via Google Analytics and Parsely. The site is well-optimized for performance and mobile responsiveness, with good accessibility features. Security best practices such as HTTPS, CSP, and reCAPTCHA are implemented. The site is hosted on infrastructure that supports fast content delivery, with multiple preconnect and DNS-prefetch hints for assets. No CMS was explicitly detected, suggesting a custom or proprietary content management solution. Overall, the technical infrastructure supports a high-quality user experience with minimal technical debt.
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