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Security report for vcsu.edu

Valley City State University · Education · United States

Medium risk. 7 critical or high findings in SSL/TLS, GDPR outside view and 1 other check.

Security score

66/100

Risk levelMedium

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

Valley City State University (VCSU) is a public higher education institution located in Valley City, North Dakota, with a rich history dating back to 1890. The university offers a broad range of academic programs including undergraduate, graduate, online, and continuing education, serving a diverse student body. VCSU positions itself as a student-focused, learning-centered institution within the North Dakota University System, emphasizing immersive experiences and career readiness. The website reflects this mission with comprehensive academic information, student life resources, and community engagement content. Technically, the website is built on WordPress 6.9.4 and leverages modern web technologies such as Bootstrap, jQuery, Google Tag Manager, and Google Analytics. The site is mobile optimized, accessible, and performs moderately well. It integrates multiple external services for analytics, advertising, and accessibility enhancements. However, some security best practices such as security headers and cookie consent mechanisms are not fully implemented. From a security perspective, the site uses HTTPS with a presumably strong SSL configuration. There are no visible vulnerabilities or exposed sensitive data in the HTML content. The absence of a published security policy, incident response contacts, or vulnerability disclosure mechanisms suggests room for improvement in security transparency and compliance. The WHOIS data query for the subdomain 'www.vcsu.edu' failed, but this is likely due to querying a subdomain rather than the root domain 'vcsu.edu'. This does not significantly detract from the legitimacy of the institution but slightly reduces trust in domain registration transparency. Overall, VCSU's website is professional, content-rich, and trustworthy, serving its educational mission effectively. Strategic recommendations include implementing cookie consent for privacy compliance, adding security headers, publishing security and incident response polici…

Scanned

NIS2 and GDPR posture

GDPR outside view
35/ 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

7 findings rated critical or high. Fix these first.

  1. 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.

    • High

      Weak Protocols Supported

      Server supports weak protocols: TLSv1.1

      What to do: Disable TLS 1.0, TLS 1.1, and all SSL versions

      • CWE-327
      • OWASP A04:2025
      • ASVS V12.1.1

  2. GDPR outside view

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

    • High

      No Privacy Policy found

      GDPR requires a clear and accessible privacy policy

      What to do: Add a comprehensive privacy policy page and link to it prominently

    • High

      No Cookie Policy found

      GDPR requires clear information about cookie usage

      What to do: Add a dedicated cookie policy explaining cookie usage and purposes

    • 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

    • High

      Third-party services without privacy policy

      Detected services: Google Analytics, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Cloudflare, Google APIs

      What to do: Document all third-party data sharing in your privacy policy

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

Keep watching vcsu.edu

This scan found 22 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
67
Security headers
30
Email security
80
DNS health
85
Network security
100
GDPR outside view
35
Average
66

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

VCSU operates as a regional public university within the education sector, targeting students seeking undergraduate and graduate degrees, as well as continuing education learners. Its competitive advantage lies in its student-centered approach, diverse academic offerings, and integration within the North Dakota University System. Revenue streams likely include tuition, state funding, donations, and grants. The university maintains partnerships with local communities and alumni networks, as evidenced by linked domains and social media presence. Growth indicators include ongoing capital campaigns and facility expansions such as the Tharaldson Family Athletic Center. The website content and structure support recruitment, engagement, and community outreach effectively.

Security posture

The security posture of the VCSU website is moderate to good. HTTPS is enforced, and multiple verification mechanisms (Google, Facebook) are in place, indicating domain ownership control. However, the lack of security headers such as Content-Security-Policy, X-Frame-Options, and X-Content-Type-Options reduces protection against common web attacks. No vulnerability disclosure or incident response information is published, which limits transparency and preparedness. The site does not display cookie consent banners, which may impact GDPR compliance. No exposed sensitive data or vulnerable libraries were detected in the HTML content. Overall, the site is secure but could benefit from enhanced security controls and compliance measures.

Recommendations

  1. Implement comprehensive security headers (CSP, X-Frame-Options, X-Content-Type-Options) to mitigate common web vulnerabilities.
  2. Add a cookie consent banner and privacy compliance mechanisms to meet GDPR and other privacy regulations.
  3. Publish a vulnerability disclosure policy or security.txt file to improve transparency and encourage responsible reporting.
  4. Provide clear incident response contact information, including security or abuse email addresses.
  5. Clarify domain WHOIS registration details by querying the root domain 'vcsu.edu' and ensuring public availability of registrant information.

Contact details published on the site

Addresses
Legal name
Valley City State University
Site observations

Automated reading of the public site. Ratings are indicative.

Business

Company
Valley City State University
Description
Valley City State University takes pride in helping you become the person you want to be. It's a great time to be a VCSU Viking! Rooted in tradition since 1890, Valley City State University supports students throughout their journey and is part of the North Dakota University System.
Key services
Undergraduate programs, Graduate programs, Online education, Continuing education, Athletics, Student life and residence services
Content quality
excellent
Branding
consistent

Technology

Stack
WordPress 6.9.4, Google Tag Manager, Google Analytics, Google Custom Search Engine, Bootstrap 4.2.1, jQuery 3.6.0, Ekko Lightbox, Owl Carousel, Lity Lightbox, Silktide analytics, Ally accessibility tools
Frameworks
Bootstrap
Platforms
WordPress
Performance
moderate
Mobile
good
Accessibility
good
SEO
good

Security

Observed score
85/100
Good practices seen
  • HTTPS enabled
  • Google site verification
  • Facebook domain verification
  • Use of Google Tag Manager and analytics scripts with async loading

Analytics and tracking

Services
Google Analytics, Silktide analytics
Tracking level
moderate
Privacy practices
basic

Advertising

Ad networks
Simpli.fi, Brandcdn
Tracking pixels
Simpli.fi, Brandcdn
Marketing tools
Silktide analytics
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 multimedia.
  2. No WAF or security challenge detected.
  3. WHOIS data query was performed on 'www.vcsu.edu' which is a subdomain; WHOIS data for 'vcsu.edu' likely exists but was not provided.
  4. Website uses modern web technologies and is mobile optimized.
  5. No explicit privacy or cookie consent banners detected.
  6. No visible security.txt or vulnerability disclosure policy.
  7. Contact information is prominently displayed in footer with phone and physical address.
  8. Social media presence includes Instagram, Twitter (X), and Facebook.
  9. Multiple Google verification meta tags present indicating ownership verification.
  10. Use of multiple Google Tag Manager containers and analytics IDs.
Technical notes

Notes

The website is built on a modern WordPress CMS platform with version 6.9.4, utilizing Bootstrap 4.2.1 for responsive design and jQuery for interactivity. It integrates Google Tag Manager and Google Analytics for tracking and marketing purposes. The site uses several third-party libraries for UI components such as Owl Carousel, Ekko Lightbox, and Lity Lightbox. Accessibility is enhanced with Ally tools. Performance is moderate, with asynchronous loading of scripts and preloading of fonts. The site is mobile optimized and SEO friendly with proper meta tags and structured data (JSON-LD). Technical risks include missing security headers and lack of cookie consent mechanisms, which could impact compliance and security posture.
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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