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Is bates.edu a Scam? Security Check Results - Bates College

bates.edu Security Report Summary

bates.edu received a security score of 60 out of 100 in Guard's comprehensive security analysis, classified as "Moderate Risk". This report covers Bates College's website security posture. Bates College operates in the Education industry in United States.

Bates College is a well-established, nationally recognized liberal arts college located in Lewiston, Maine. The institution offers a broad range of academic programs and emphasizes inclusivity, academic excellence, and social responsibility. The website serves multiple audiences including prospective and current students, faculty, alumni, and families, providing comprehensive information about admissions, academics, campus life, and events. The college maintains a strong digital presence with official social media accounts and a modern, well-structured website built on WordPress. Technically, the website leverages a modern CMS platform with integration of popular analytics and marketing tools such as Google Tag Manager and TikTok Pixel. The site is mobile-optimized, accessible, and performs moderately well. Security posture is solid with HTTPS enforced and no visible sensitive data exposure, though there is room for improvement in security headers and incident response transparency. Privacy compliance is partially met with a comprehensive privacy policy but lacks a cookie consent mechanism. Overall, Bates College's website reflects a professional and trustworthy educational institution with strong branding and content quality. The absence of WHOIS data is consistent with .edu domain privacy policies and does not detract from the domain's legitimacy. Strategic recommendations include enhancing security headers, implementing cookie consent, and publishing vulnerability disclosure information to further strengthen trust and compliance.

The security scan identified 33 findings across security headers, SSL/TLS, DNS health, email security, GDPR compliance, and NIS2 compliance analysis modules.

Technologies detected: WordPress 7.0, jQuery 3.7.1, Google Tag Manager, TikTok Pixel, Fast.fonts.net, Bates custom plugins and themes.

About this security scan

Guard performs automated security assessments of websites by analyzing SSL/TLS certificates, HTTP security headers, DNS configuration, email authentication protocols (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), GDPR compliance indicators, NIS2 directive compliance, network exposure, and business-context intelligence. Each report provides domain-specific findings, risk scores, and actionable recommendations.

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Is bates.edu Safe? Security Analysis for Bates College

https://www.bates.edu/

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EducationUnited Statesmedium
WordPress 7.0jQuery 3.7.1Google Tag ManagerTikTok PixelFast.fonts.net+1 more
Analyzed Completed
60
Security Score
MEDIUM RISK

Above Education avg (55)

GDPR-aligned

Data handling

EU

Hosting region

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AI Summary

Bates College is a well-established, nationally recognized liberal arts college located in Lewiston, Maine. The institution offers a broad range of academic programs and emphasizes inclusivity, academic excellence, and social responsibility. The website serves multiple audiences including prospective and current students, faculty, alumni, and families, providing comprehensive information about admissions, academics, campus life, and events. The college maintains a strong digital presence with official social media accounts and a modern, well-structured website built on WordPress. Technically, the website leverages a modern CMS platform with integration of popular analytics and marketing tools such as Google Tag Manager and TikTok Pixel. The site is mobile-optimized, accessible, and performs moderately well. Security posture is solid with HTTPS enforced and no visible sensitive data exposure, though there is room for improvement in security headers and incident response transparency. Privacy compliance is partially met with a comprehensive privacy policy but lacks a cookie consent mechanism. Overall, Bates College's website reflects a professional and trustworthy educational institution with strong branding and content quality. The absence of WHOIS data is consistent with .edu domain privacy policies and does not detract from the domain's legitimacy. Strategic recommendations include enhancing security headers, implementing cookie consent, and publishing vulnerability disclosure information to further strengthen trust and compliance.

Detected Technologies

WordPress 7.0jQuery 3.7.1Google Tag ManagerTikTok PixelFast.fonts.netBates custom plugins and themes

10 urgent findings need attention

10 high

  • + 2 more findings in the full report below
Continuous monitoring

Keep bates.edu under constant watch

Guard tracks your live infrastructure daily: certificate expiry, DNS & mail authentication drift, uptime changes, subdomain inventory, and unexpected tracker or content shifts. A full timeline captures every diff so you can prove remediation and spot regressions instantly.

Security drift alerts

Risk score drops, new high-severity issues, and header hardening gaps

Compliance watch

GDPR / NIS2 posture changes with governance evidence snapshots

Infrastructure surface

Unexpected open services, SSL expiry, DNS & email authentication changes

Content & tracker intelligence

Marketing tech shifts, analytics drift, and AI recommendation updates

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OffSeq Observations

No critical findings yet

84/100

DNS Health

2 findings

85/100

SSL/TLS Security

5 findings

52/100

Network Security

1 finding

100/100

🧠AI Business Intelligence

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

Business Intelligence

Market & Strategic Analysis

Bates College operates as a non-profit educational institution focused on undergraduate liberal arts education. It holds a strong market position as a nationally recognized residential college with a commitment to academic excellence and social responsibility. The college's business model centers on tuition, donations, and alumni engagement, supported by a robust digital presence that facilitates admissions, campus visits, and community outreach. The institution targets students, parents, faculty, and alumni, leveraging partnerships with athletics and donation platforms. Growth indicators include active event programming and strategic planning initiatives. The college's operations are supported by a modern web infrastructure and consistent branding, reinforcing its reputation in the higher education sector.

Extracted Contact Information

Marketing Intelligence Data

Security Posture Analysis

Comprehensive Security Assessment

The website demonstrates a mature security posture with mandatory HTTPS encryption and no exposed sensitive information in the HTML content. However, the absence of key security headers such as Content-Security-Policy and X-Frame-Options represents an area for improvement. The use of third-party analytics and marketing scripts introduces moderate tracking but no evident vulnerabilities. The lack of published incident response contacts or vulnerability disclosure policies limits transparency and readiness for security incidents. Overall, the security posture is good but could be enhanced by adopting additional best practices and improving privacy compliance mechanisms.

Strategic Recommendations

Priority Actions for Security Improvement

1

Implement comprehensive security headers including Content-Security-Policy, X-Frame-Options, and X-Content-Type-Options.

Observations

Comprehensive website and business-context analysis.

AI-Enhanced Website Analysis

Business Insights

Company:

Bates College

Description:

Bates College is a coeducational, nonsectarian, nationally recognized residential college of the liberal arts and sciences in Lewiston, Maine.

Key Services:
Undergraduate educationCampus visits and virtual toursAcademic programs including majors and minorsAlumni relations and eventsStudent financial services
Content Quality:

excellent

Branding:

consistent

Technical Stack

Technologies:
WordPress 7.0jQuery 3.7.1Google Tag ManagerTikTok PixelFast.fonts.netBates custom plugins and themes
Frameworks:
WordPress
Platforms:
Web
Performance:

moderate

Mobile:

excellent

Accessibility:

good

SEO:

good

Security Assessment

Security Score:
85/100
Best Practices:
  • HTTPS enforced
  • No exposed sensitive data in HTML
  • Use of async and defer for scripts to improve performance

Analytics & Tracking

Services:
TikTok AnalyticsGoogle Tag ManagerBates custom web analytics
Tracking Level:moderate
Privacy Compliance:basic

Advertising & Marketing

Tracking Pixels:
TikTok Pixel
Marketing Tools:
TikTok Analytics
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 multimedia

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🛡️Security Headers

HTTP security headers analysis and recommendations.

Security Headers

HTTP security headers analysis

15/100
Score

Missing Strict-Transport-Security header

HIGH

Forces HTTPS connections

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)

Weak Referrer-Policy configuration

LOW

Current value: "no-referrer-when-downgrade"

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
phone

🛡️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

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📧Email Security

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

Email Security

SPF, DKIM, and DMARC validation

70/100
Score

Complex SPF record

LOW

Too many include statements can cause lookup limits

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 ip4:169.54.207.232 include:_spf.bates.edu include:_spf.google.com include:spf.dynect.net include:_spf.qualtrics.com include:servers.mcsv.net include:_spf_uswest2.prod.hydra.sophos.com include:amazonses.com ~all
DNS Lookups:7/10
Policy:~all
DKIM Selectors Found
Selector:google(1296-bit rsa)
Selector:k1(1296-bit rsa)
DMARC Details
Policy:none
Aggregate Reports:[email protected]

🏆SSL/TLS Security

Certificate validity and encryption analysis.

SSL/TLS Security

Certificate validity and encryption analysis

52/100
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

HSTS Not Enabled

MEDIUM

HTTP Strict Transport Security (HSTS) is not configured

Mixed Content Detected

MEDIUM

1 resources loaded over insecure HTTP

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

85/100
Score

DNSSEC Not Enabled

MEDIUM

DNSSEC is not configured for this domain

DMARC Policy Set to None

LOW

DMARC is configured but not enforcing any policy

Domain Registration Details

Expiry Risk
none(361 days)

DNS Records

A Records:134.181.132.44, 134.181.132.45
Name Servers:
a1-119.akam.netDNS only
a14-67.akam.netDNS only
a16-64.akam.netDNS only
a18-64.akam.netDNS only
a5-65.akam.netDNS only
a9-66.akam.netDNS only
loki.bates.eduDNS only
thor.bates.eduDNS only
MX Records:
10: ALT4.ASPMX.L.GOOGLE.COM
1: ASPMX.L.GOOGLE.COM
10: ALT3.ASPMX.L.GOOGLE.COM
5: ALT2.ASPMX.L.GOOGLE.COM
5: ALT1.ASPMX.L.GOOGLE.COM
SOA:Serial: 2026062404, TTL: 1200s

DNSSEC Status

DNSSEC Not Enabled

DNS Performance

Resolution Time:21ms

SPF Analysis

SPF Record:
v=spf1 ip4:169.54.207.232 include:_spf.bates.edu include:_spf.google.com include:spf.dynect.net include:_spf.qualtrics.com include:servers.mcsv.net include:_spf_uswest2.prod.hydra.sophos.com include:amazonses.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

How does bates.edu compare?

See how bates.edu stacks up against similar websites in the same industry.

🔧Technical Analysis

Detailed technical findings and analysis from AI assessment.

Technical Analysis

Comprehensive security assessment findings

Additional Findings

The website is built on WordPress 7.0 with a custom Bates theme and plugins, utilizing jQuery 3.7.1 and asynchronous loading of analytics scripts for performance optimization. The site uses modern web fonts and responsive design techniques to ensure excellent mobile usability and accessibility. Performance is moderate, with opportunities to improve load times by optimizing images and script delivery. The technical infrastructure is stable and well-maintained, supporting a professional user experience. However, the hosting provider is not explicitly identified, and some security best practices such as security headers are missing, representing technical debt that should be addressed.
Professional Report

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Optional add-ons

via BREACH

Your order

Full Report
PDF · email delivery · lifetime access
39.90
Total
Incl. 21% VAT
39.90
Already purchased? Enter unlock code
VisaMastercardApple PayGoogle Payvia EveryPay
SEQ SIA
Reg. No. 40203410806 · VAT LV40203410806

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