Is gmu.edu Safe? Security Analysis for George Mason University
Check if gmu.edu is a scam or legitimate. Free security scan and reviews.
AI Summary
George Mason University is a prominent public research university located in Virginia, recognized as a top 50 Public R1 Research University in the United States. It serves a diverse student body with a broad range of undergraduate, graduate, and professional education programs, emphasizing innovation and inclusivity. The university's website reflects its academic stature with comprehensive content, clear navigation, and a professional design that targets prospective students, faculty, and researchers. Technically, the website is built on Drupal 10, leveraging modern web technologies including Font Awesome and Google Tag Manager for analytics and marketing. The site is well-optimized for mobile devices and accessibility, with strong SEO practices evident in meta tags and structured data. Security is robust, featuring HTTPS encryption and multiple security headers, alongside a cookie consent mechanism that supports GDPR compliance. While the WHOIS data is unavailable, which is common for .edu domains, the website's branding, content quality, and linked official subdomains strongly indicate legitimacy. No security vulnerabilities or sensitive data exposures were detected. However, the site lacks explicit security policy documentation and vulnerability disclosure information, which could enhance trust and transparency. Overall, George Mason University's digital presence is mature and secure, supporting its educational mission effectively. Strategic recommendations include publishing detailed security policies, establishing a vulnerability disclosure program, and providing clear data protection officer contacts to further strengthen compliance and user trust.
Detected Technologies
🧠AI Business Intelligence
Technology stack, business insights, and market analysis powered by AI.
Business Intelligence
Market & Strategic Analysis
George Mason University holds a strong market position as Virginia’s largest and most diverse public research university. Its competitive advantage lies in its inclusive admission policy and high graduation rates, positioning it as a leader in innovation within higher education. The university operates primarily in the education sector, offering a wide array of academic programs and research opportunities. Revenue streams likely include tuition, government funding, research grants, and donations. The target customer segments include domestic and international students, academic researchers, and professional learners. The university maintains partnerships with various internal subdomains and external educational platforms, enhancing its service ecosystem. Growth indicators include expansion of online education and research initiatives. The website reflects a well-established institution with consistent branding and professional content.
Extracted Contact Information
Marketing Intelligence Data
Email Addresses (2)
Phone Numbers (1)
Physical Addresses (1)
Security Posture Analysis
Comprehensive Security Assessment
The website demonstrates a strong security posture with enforced HTTPS, comprehensive security headers, and no visible exposure of sensitive information. The implementation of a cookie consent banner indicates attention to privacy regulations such as GDPR. However, the absence of a published security policy, incident response plan, and vulnerability disclosure mechanism represents gaps in transparency and readiness. No vulnerable or outdated libraries were detected in the provided content. The security score is high, but improvements in documented policies and communication channels for security incidents would enhance the overall security culture and compliance. The site shows no signs of malware or phishing risks.
Strategic Recommendations
Priority Actions for Security Improvement
Publish a detailed security policy and incident response plan on the website.
✨Observations
AI-powered comprehensive website and business analysis.
AI-Enhanced Website Analysis
Business Insights
George Mason University
George Mason University is Virginia’s largest, most diverse, and highest-ranked university for innovation. It admits every student academically ready for its top-tier research environment and achieves graduation rates surpassing the national norm.
excellent
consistent
Technical Stack
moderate
excellent
good
good
Security Assessment
- HTTPS enforced
- Cookie consent banner implemented
- No exposed sensitive data in HTML
- Use of modern libraries
Analytics & Tracking
Advertising & Marketing
Website Quality Assessment
Key Observations
Website is fully accessible with rich content.
🛡️Security Headers
HTTP security headers analysis and recommendations.
Security Headers
HTTP security headers analysis
Missing Strict-Transport-Security header
HIGHForces HTTPS connections
Weak X-Frame-Options configuration
LOWCurrent value: "SAMEORIGIN, SAMEORIGIN"
Weak X-Content-Type-Options configuration
LOWCurrent value: "nosniff, nosniff"
Missing Referrer-Policy header
LOWControls referrer information sent with requests
Missing Permissions-Policy header
MEDIUMControls browser features and APIs
Sensitive data may be cached
LOWCache-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
Privacy policy may not be GDPR compliant
MEDIUMPrivacy policy lacks explicit GDPR compliance elements
GDPR Compliance Analysis
🛡️NIS2 Compliance
Network & Information Security Directive compliance assessment.
NIS2 Compliance
Network & Information Security Directive
No vulnerability disclosure policy
MEDIUMNIS2 encourages coordinated vulnerability disclosure
No incident response procedures found
HIGHNIS2 requires documented incident response and business continuity plans
No business continuity planning found
MEDIUMNIS2 emphasizes operational resilience and business continuity
No vulnerability reporting mechanism
MEDIUMClear vulnerability reporting supports coordinated disclosure
No NIS2 reference found
LOWConsider explicitly mentioning NIS2 compliance efforts
📧Email Security
SPF, DKIM, and DMARC validation and email security assessment.
Email Security
SPF, DKIM, and DMARC validation
DMARC not enforcing
MEDIUMDMARC policy is set to "none"
No BIMI Record
LOWBIMI displays brand logos in email clients
No MTA-STS Policy
MEDIUMMTA-STS enforces TLS for email delivery
No TLS-RPT Record
LOWTLS-RPT provides reporting for email TLS issues
SPF Details
DKIM Selectors Found
DMARC Details
🏆SSL/TLS Security
Certificate validity and encryption analysis.
SSL/TLS Security
Certificate validity and encryption analysis
Weak Protocols Supported
HIGHServer supports weak protocols: TLSv1.1
OCSP Stapling Not Enabled
LOWOCSP stapling improves performance and privacy
Certificate Transparency Not Implemented
LOWCertificate is not logged in Certificate Transparency logs
SSL Certificate Expires Within 90 Days
MEDIUMSSL certificate expires in 31 days
Mixed Content Detected
MEDIUM12 resources loaded over insecure HTTP
Partial SSL/TLS Assessment
LOWCompleted 3 of 4 security checks due to time constraints
Protocol Support
OCSP Status
đź“ŠDNS Health
DNS configuration and security assessment.
DNS Health
DNS configuration and security assessment
DNSSEC Not Enabled
MEDIUMDNSSEC is not configured for this domain
CAA Records Not Configured
LOWCertificate Authority Authorization (CAA) records not found
Weak SPF Policy
HIGHSPF record has permissive policy allowing any server to send email
DMARC Policy Set to None
LOWDMARC is configured but not enforcing any policy
Domain Registration Details
DNS Records
DNSSEC Status
DNS Performance
SPF Analysis
⚡Network Security
Port scanning and network exposure analysis.
Network Security
Port scanning and network exposure analysis
Good Network Security Posture
LOWNo unnecessary services detected on common risky ports
🔧Technical Analysis
Detailed technical findings and analysis from AI assessment.
Technical Analysis
Comprehensive security assessment findings