Recommendation

Proceed

Overall Summary

Safe

Why we think so

smh.com.au is the official website of The Sydney Morning Herald, a major Australian news outlet owned by Nine Entertainment. It receives about 18.9 million visits per month, ranks #3,732 globally and #78 in Australia, with most traffic from Australia and strong direct access. The site uses a wide range of advertising and analytics technologies, employs secure HTTPS with a valid SSL certificate issued by COMODO, and is protected by reputable domain registrars and DNS providers. There are no scam or phishing flags from major databases. Official contact emails and social media are publicly listed, and the domain has no trademark conflicts or legal disputes. Recent news from the domain is diverse and current. Overall, it is a legitimate, well-established, and secure media website.

Confidence Score

88%

Risk Insights

📰

Strong Australian News Source

Hosts major news brand The Sydney Morning Herald

Over 18 million monthly visits, mostly from Australia

Ranks #78 in Australian web traffic

🔒

Secure and Legitimate Site

Valid SSL certificate from trusted issuer

No phishing or scam alerts detected

Official contacts and social media publicly available

Contradictory Signals

Subscription billing issues exist but are handled through appropriate official channels and do not indicate scams.

Signal A: No scam reports

Signal B: Some user complaints about subscription billing

Category Scores

Identity 90/100

Reputation 90/100

Technical 85/100

Content 85/100

Legal 85/100

Business Validity 90/100

Red Flags & Warnings

Domain age unspecified in WHOIS, but registrar and DNS control suggest stable administration.

🔎 Detailed Checks & Analysis

Traffic volume and quality

Score: 90/100

Passed

"Traffic data from SimilarWeb and SimilarTech confirms site popularity and user engagement metrics."

Reason: smh.com.au receives about 18.9M monthly visits with low bounce and good page views, mostly from Australia, confirming strong legitimate interest.

Technology and security

Score: 85/100

Passed

"WHOIS and SSL details confirm secure domain setup and professional tech stack."

Reason: Site uses reputable analytics and advertising technologies; SSL is valid and signed by a trusted authority (COMODO).

Blacklist and safe browsing

Score: 95/100

Passed

"No matched threats in major scam or security databases."

Reason: No match on crypto scam blacklists or Google Safe Browsing warnings, indicating no known malware or phishing.

Contact and ownership transparency

Score: 80/100

Passed

"Public listings of emails (e.g., letters@smh.com.au) and social media pages add trust."

Reason: Multiple official contact emails and verified social media accounts provide transparency and support channels.

Legal and trademark checks

Score: 80/100

Passed

"Clear trademark status reduces risks of brand impersonation."

Reason: No trademark conflicts or registered disputes involving smh.com.au found in USPTO records.

Reputation and scam complaints

Score: 90/100

Passed

"Search results from consumer protection and scam databases confirm clean reputation."

Reason: No credible reports of scams or fraud related to the domain; subscription complaints are handled via official channels.

Recent content activity

Score: 70/100

Passed

"Google News results show diverse, timely news coverage authored by the site."

Reason: Domain publishes frequent legitimate news articles, showing ongoing active use and no stale or suspicious content.

Your Next Steps

1

Visit smh.com.au directly for Australian news and information.
2

Use the official contact emails (e.g., letters@smh.com.au) for feedback or inquiries.
3

Verify URLs carefully to avoid phishing attempts using similar domain names.
4

Consult the help center at help.smh.com.au for complaints or support related to the service.

Evidence & Citations

SimilarTech website info for smh.com.au
Provides traffic, technology usage, and infrastructure details.
WHOIS and DNS data for smh.com.au
Confirms domain registration and SSL details.
Google Safe Browsing results for smh.com.au
Shows no detected risks.
Official emails and social media for smh.com.au
Public contact channels.
USPTO trademark search for smh.com
No trademark conflicts found.
Scam and review info for smh.com.au
No credible scam reports; official complaint channels explained.
Recent news from smh.com.au
Demonstrates active legitimate content publishing.

🕵🏻 Keep investigating

Recommended →

🌐 Vet another Website

Run another instant due diligence scan on any domain. Verify before you subscribe or shop!

25 Common Website Scams & How To Avoid Them

Scam types: Spot fake SaaS login pages before handing over credentials; Audit clone banking sites before customers log in; Investigate crypto investment landing pages

Read playbook →

Scam Encyclopedia

Browse platform-specific scams / red flags and see real-world encounters curated by our analysts.

Read playbook →