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Security report for cae.com

CAE Inc. · Transportation · Canada

High risk. 5 critical or high findings in GDPR outside view, SSL/TLS and 2 other checks.

Security score

39/100

Risk levelHigh

0–100, higher is better. How it is calculated

CAE Inc. is a leading global provider of training and simulation solutions primarily serving the civil aviation, defense and security, and healthcare sectors. The company operates an enterprise-scale business model with a strong market position supported by a comprehensive portfolio of training services, simulation equipment, and software solutions. CAE targets aviation professionals, defense organizations, and business partners worldwide, leveraging a well-established brand and extensive global presence. The website reflects a mature digital infrastructure with modern JavaScript frameworks and Cloudflare hosting, although it lacks a valid SSL certificate, which is a critical security gap. Privacy compliance is robust, with clear cookie and privacy policies and consent mechanisms implemented via OneTrust. The security posture is moderate but impaired by the absence of HTTPS and incomplete SSL/TLS configurations. Overall, CAE presents a professional and trustworthy online presence with room for security improvements to align with best practices.

Scanned

NIS2 and GDPR posture

GDPR outside view
33/ 100 · High
Checks completed
7of 7

NIS2 Art. 21(2)

  1. (a) Risk analysis and security policies: Not visible from outside
  2. (b) Incident handling: One indicator
  3. (c) Business continuity, backups and crisis management: Not visible from outside
  4. (d) Supply chain security: Not visible from outside
  5. (e) Secure acquisition, development and maintenance, including vulnerability handling: Partly checked
  6. (f) Assessing the effectiveness of security measures: Not visible from outside
  7. (g) Cyber hygiene and security training: Not visible from outside
  8. (h) Cryptography and encryption: Partly checked
  9. (i) HR security, access control and asset management: One indicator
  10. (j) Multi-factor authentication and secured communications: Not visible from outside

This scan rated NIS2 with an earlier keyword method that is no longer shown; rescan for the per-article view. Risk management, continuity, supply chain, training, MFA, management oversight (Art. 20) and incident reporting (Art. 23) need internal evidence, and Guard cannot tell whether NIS2 applies to this organisation.

GDPR is indicative only, based on publicly visible signals: Articles 7, 12, 13 and 32 of Regulation (EU) 2016/679 and Article 5(3) of the ePrivacy Directive. Not a certification or legal assessment.

Priority findings

5 findings rated critical or high. Fix these first.

  1. GDPR outside view

    These are the privacy signals visitors and data protection authorities look for under GDPR.

    • Critical

      No HTTPS encryption

      GDPR requires appropriate security measures for personal data

      What to do: Implement SSL/TLS certificate for HTTPS

    • High

      No Cookie Consent Banner found

      GDPR requires explicit consent for non-essential cookies

      What to do: Implement a cookie consent banner that appears on first visit

  2. SSL/TLS

    TLS encrypts the connection and proves the site is really yours. Weak or expiring certificates trigger browser warnings and put traffic at risk.

    • Critical

      No HTTPS Encryption

      Website does not use HTTPS encryption, making all data transmission vulnerable to interception

      What to do: Implement SSL/TLS certificate and redirect all HTTP traffic to HTTPS

  3. Network security

    Services reachable from the internet are the first thing attackers probe. Anything open that does not need to be should be closed.

    • Critical

      Critical Service Exposed: MySQL

      Port 3306 (MySQL) is publicly accessible - MySQL - Database server

      What to do: Immediately restrict access to MySQL using firewall or VPN

      • NIS2 21(2)(e)
      • IR 2024/2690 6.7.2(f): Implementing Regulation (EU) 2024/2690, Annex point 6.7.2(f): Network security
      • NIST CM-7: NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5 CM-7: Least Functionality
      • NIST SC-7: NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5 SC-7: Boundary Protection

  4. Security headers

    Security headers are instructions your web server sends to every visitor’s browser. Missing ones leave visitors more exposed to attacks such as clickjacking and injected scripts.

    • High

      Missing Content-Security-Policy header

      Controls resources the browser is allowed to load

      What to do: Implement a Content-Security-Policy appropriate for your application

      • ASVS V3.4.3
      • OWASP Secure Headers: OWASP Secure Headers Project recommends Content-Security-Policy: default-src 'self'; form-action 'self'; base-uri 'self'; object-src 'none';…

Need hands-on remediation? Email guard@offseq.com

Keep watching cae.com

This scan found 15 issues across 6 checks. Monitoring re-runs those checks daily, emails you when something material changes and records each fix, so you can show progress.

Daily monitoring

Recommended

€25per month

  • TLS certificates and expiry
  • DNS records
  • SPF, DKIM and DMARC
  • Security headers
  • GDPR and NIS2 posture
  • Exposed services
  • Third-party trackers
  • Security score drift

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Results by check

Each check with its score, findings and the evidence it collected.

How this score is calculated

The security score runs 0–100, higher is better. It is the plain average of the security checks that completed in this scan, each counted equally. A check that could not run is left out: it counts neither as a pass nor as a fail.

Counted in this score

SSL/TLS
0
Security headers
60
Email security
50
DNS health
90
Network security
0
GDPR outside view
33
Average
39

Not counted

  • NIS2 outside view: Re-weights evidence from the TLS, email, DNS, network and hygiene checks, so counting it would count that evidence twice. Shown on its own.
  • OffSeq Observations: An AI reading of the site, useful context but not reproducible evidence. Shown on its own.

Findings that cap the score at 49

Each of these is serious on its own, so while any is present the site cannot rate better than high risk, however good the other checks are.

  • The certificate is not trusted by browsers
  • The website is not served over HTTPS
  • A database, remote desktop, file-sharing or Telnet service is reachable from the internet · found on this site
  • The page loads a script from a compromised source
  • The domain registration has expired
  • SPF authorises every server to send mail as the domain

Partial scans

When the site blocks Guard or most checks cannot run, the score covers only the checks that ran (usually DNS and email), is capped at 75 and is shown as partial, without a risk level.

Risk levels

  • Critical0–25
  • High26–49
  • Medium50–75
  • Low76–100

Technical appendix

Business context, site observations and technical notes gathered during the scan, and the standards behind each reference.

Business context

Business profile

CAE's market positioning as a leader in aviation and defense training is reinforced by its extensive service offerings, including pilot training, aviation software, and technical support services. The company maintains a strong partnership ecosystem with dedicated subdomains and partner platforms for specialized services like crew training and technical consulting. Investor relations and sustainability reporting indicate transparency and corporate governance maturity. The business model is diversified across B2B and B2C segments, with digital channels supporting recruitment, customer support, and event management. The website's content and navigation are well-structured, targeting multiple stakeholder groups effectively.

Security posture

The website employs several security headers such as Strict-Transport-Security, X-Frame-Options, and X-XSS-Protection, indicating awareness of security best practices. However, the lack of a valid SSL certificate and disabled HSTS significantly weaken the security posture, exposing users to potential risks. No vulnerabilities related to SSL/TLS protocols or known exploits were detected, but the absence of OCSP stapling and session resumption mechanisms suggests opportunities for enhancement. No explicit incident response or security policy documentation is available, which could be a gap in transparency and preparedness. Overall, the security maturity is moderate but requires urgent remediation of SSL issues to protect user data and maintain trust.

Recommendations

  1. Install and maintain a valid SSL/TLS certificate to enable HTTPS across the entire site.
  2. Enable and configure HSTS with includeSubDomains and preload flags to enforce secure connections.
  3. Implement OCSP stapling and session resumption to improve SSL performance and security.
  4. Publish a clear security policy and incident response plan accessible to users and partners.
  5. Regularly audit and update security headers and cookie settings to align with evolving best practices.
Technical notes

Notes

The website is built on a custom PHP backend (version 8.3.21) with modern front-end technologies including Alpine.js, jQuery, Lity.js, Smooth Scroll, and Splide.js for enhanced user experience. Hosting is provided via Cloudflare, offering CDN and security features, although SSL misconfiguration limits benefits. Performance metrics indicate slow loading times, possibly due to missing caching or optimization. The site is mobile-optimized with responsive design and accessibility features, though accessibility could be improved. SEO is supported by proper meta tags and Open Graph data. The technical stack is modern but requires improvements in SSL and performance optimization to reduce technical debt and enhance user trust.
Standards and sources

Reference chips under each finding point to the standard, regulation or specification the finding relates to. They are taken from the official datasets below and mapped conservatively: a finding with no defensible link shows none. NIS2 and GDPR references mark where a finding is relevant evidence, not a compliance verdict. Implementing Regulation (EU) 2024/2690 binds digital infrastructure and digital service providers; for other entities it is the most detailed public reading of the Article 21 measures. WCAG, EN 301 549, European Accessibility Act and Web Accessibility Directive references name the requirement an automated accessibility rule relates to; they are not a conformance verdict.

Retrieved 2026-10-25

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