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Security report for erau.edu

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University · Education · United States

Medium risk. 6 critical or high findings in GDPR outside view, SSL/TLS and 1 other check.

Security score

57/100

Risk levelMedium

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

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University is a globally recognized leader in aviation and aerospace education, offering a wide range of degree programs across multiple campuses and online platforms. The university has a strong market position supported by its long history since 1926, comprehensive academic offerings, and a large alumni network. The website reflects a mature digital presence with professional design, clear navigation, and extensive content tailored to prospective students and stakeholders. Technically, the site uses modern web technologies including jQuery, Google Tag Manager, and responsive design elements, ensuring good performance and accessibility. Security posture is solid with HTTPS enforcement and privacy compliance mechanisms such as cookie consent banners, though there is room for improvement in publishing explicit security policies and incident response contacts. Overall, the site demonstrates high business credibility and trustworthiness, with consistent branding and clear contact information.

Scanned

NIS2 and GDPR posture

GDPR outside view
55/ 100 · Medium
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

6 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

  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. 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 Strict-Transport-Security header

      Forces HTTPS connections

      What to do: Add "Strict-Transport-Security: max-age=31536000; includeSubDomains; preload"

      • CWE-319
      • OWASP A04:2025
      • ASVS V3.4.1
    • High

      Missing X-Frame-Options header

      Prevents clickjacking attacks

      What to do: Add "X-Frame-Options: DENY" or "X-Frame-Options: SAMEORIGIN"

    • 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';…

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Keep watching erau.edu

This scan found 18 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.

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  • 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
20
Email security
80
DNS health
85
Network security
100
GDPR outside view
55
Average
57

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
  • 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

Embry-Riddle operates as an essential educational institution specializing in aviation and aerospace, targeting students and professionals seeking specialized STEM education. Its business model focuses on degree programs, research, and career services, supported by multiple campuses and a worldwide online presence. The university benefits from strong accreditation and a large alumni network, which enhances its competitive advantage. Partnerships and subsidiary campuses extend its reach internationally. The website's integration of social media and marketing tools supports engagement and recruitment efforts. Growth indicators include new degree programs and active news dissemination. Strategic observations highlight the importance of maintaining technological modernization and expanding digital services to sustain market leadership.

Security posture

The website exhibits a good security posture with mandatory HTTPS, cookie consent for GDPR compliance, and no visible exposure of sensitive data. Use of Google Tag Manager and third-party scripts is controlled, but the absence of explicit security headers and a published security policy or incident response information indicates areas for enhancement. No vulnerabilities or malware indicators were detected in the HTML content. The site would benefit from implementing security best practices such as Content-Security-Policy headers and providing clear channels for reporting security incidents to improve trust and compliance.

Recommendations

  1. Publish a dedicated security policy page outlining security frameworks and practices.
  2. Add incident response contact information such as security@ or abuse@ email addresses.
  3. Implement security headers including Content-Security-Policy, X-Frame-Options, and Strict-Transport-Security.
  4. Regularly audit and update third-party scripts to mitigate potential vulnerabilities.
  5. Enhance transparency around data retention policies and user privacy controls.

Contact details published on the site

Addresses
Legal name
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
Site observations

Automated reading of the public site. Ratings are indicative.

Business

Company
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
Description
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University is the world's largest, fully accredited university specializing in aviation and aerospace, offering flexible online degrees and on-campus programs internationally.
Key services
Undergraduate and graduate degree programs, Online and on-campus education, Research in aviation and aerospace, Career services and alumni engagement
Content quality
excellent
Branding
consistent

Technology

Stack
jQuery 3.5.1, Google Tag Manager, Capture Higher Ed (cbe.capturehighered.net), Google Fonts (Oswald), Owl Carousel
Performance
moderate
Mobile
good
Accessibility
good
SEO
good

Security

Observed score
85/100
Good practices seen
  • HTTPS enforced (canonical URL is https)
  • Cookie consent banner for GDPR compliance
  • No exposed sensitive data in HTML
  • Use of Google Tag Manager for controlled script loading

Analytics and tracking

Services
Google Tag Manager
Tracking level
moderate
Privacy practices
good

Advertising

Tracking pixels
Capture Higher Ed
Transparency
basic

Site quality

Design
excellent
User experience
excellent
Content relevance
excellent
Navigation
excellent
Professionalism
excellent
Trustworthiness
high

Key observations

  1. Website is fully accessible with rich content and structured data
  2. Strong branding and consistent messaging throughout
  3. Comprehensive information about campuses, programs, and news
  4. Good GDPR and privacy compliance with cookie consent
  5. No visible security or privacy red flags
  6. Use of modern web technologies and analytics tools
Technical notes

Notes

The website is built on a modern technology stack featuring jQuery, Google Tag Manager, and responsive CSS frameworks likely based on Bootstrap. It uses structured data (JSON-LD) for SEO and rich snippets, improving search engine visibility. Performance is moderate with asynchronous script loading and optimized font usage. Mobile optimization and accessibility are well addressed with skip links and ARIA labels. The CMS is not explicitly identified but appears to be a custom or proprietary solution. Hosting details are not disclosed. Opportunities exist to improve technical SEO further and implement advanced security headers to reduce risk. Overall, the technical infrastructure supports a professional and scalable web presence aligned with the university's stature.
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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