Is irs.gov Safe? Security Analysis for Internal Revenue Service
Check if irs.gov is a scam or legitimate. Free security scan and reviews.
AI Summary
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) website serves as the official digital presence of the U.S. federal tax authority, providing comprehensive tax-related information, services, and tools to individuals, businesses, tax professionals, and international filers. The site is well-branded with consistent government identity markers and offers multi-language support to cater to diverse audiences. It is positioned as the authoritative source for federal tax filing, payments, refunds, and compliance guidance. Technically, the website is built on Drupal 10 CMS, leveraging modern web technologies including Google Tag Manager and Analytics for tracking and performance monitoring. The site demonstrates good mobile optimization, accessibility, and SEO practices, ensuring a positive user experience across devices. Hosting appears to be government-managed or via Akamai CDN, supporting reliable performance. From a security perspective, the site enforces HTTPS and follows best practices in form security and data handling. While explicit security headers are not visible in the HTML, the overall posture is strong with no detected vulnerabilities or exposed sensitive data. Privacy compliance is robust with a comprehensive privacy policy, though cookie consent mechanisms and terms of service pages could be enhanced. The WHOIS data is limited due to .gov domain privacy but aligns with expected government ownership, supporting legitimacy. Overall, the IRS website is a highly credible, secure, and user-friendly platform essential for federal tax administration. Strategic recommendations include enhancing visible security policies, adding cookie consent for compliance, and improving contact information accessibility to further strengthen trust and compliance.
Detected Technologies
🧠AI Business Intelligence
Technology stack, business insights, and market analysis powered by AI.
Business Intelligence
Market & Strategic Analysis
The IRS operates as a critical government agency responsible for tax collection and enforcement in the United States. Its market position is unique as the sole federal tax authority, serving a broad customer base including individuals, businesses, nonprofits, and international taxpayers. The business model is non-commercial, focused on public service and regulatory compliance. Revenue streams are government-funded, with no commercial transactions on the site itself. The IRS maintains partnerships with related government entities such as the U.S. Treasury and oversight bodies. Growth indicators are tied to legislative changes and tax policy updates, reflected in the site's content and tools. The agency's digital presence supports operational efficiency and taxpayer engagement, with a strong ecosystem of related government portals and services.
Security Posture Analysis
Comprehensive Security Assessment
The IRS website exhibits a mature security posture appropriate for a high-profile government entity. HTTPS is enforced site-wide, ensuring encrypted communications. The absence of exposed sensitive data and secure handling of forms indicate good operational security. However, explicit security headers like Content-Security-Policy and X-Frame-Options are not visible in the HTML and should be verified server-side. No incident response or vulnerability disclosure information is publicly available, which could be improved to enhance transparency and readiness. Privacy compliance is strong with a detailed privacy policy, though cookie consent mechanisms are lacking. Overall, the site balances accessibility with security effectively, but could benefit from enhanced visible security documentation and user-facing controls.
Strategic Recommendations
Priority Actions for Security Improvement
Publish and verify explicit security headers such as Content-Security-Policy, X-Frame-Options, and X-Content-Type-Options to strengthen browser security.
✨Observations
AI-powered comprehensive website and business analysis.
AI-Enhanced Website Analysis
Business Insights
Internal Revenue Service
Pay your taxes. Get your refund status. Find IRS forms and answers to tax questions. We help you understand and meet your federal tax responsibilities.
excellent
consistent
Technical Stack
moderate
excellent
good
good
Security Assessment
- HTTPS enforced
- No exposed sensitive data in HTML
- Secure forms with autocomplete off
- Use of official .gov domain
Analytics & Tracking
Advertising & Marketing
Website Quality Assessment
Key Observations
Official U.S. government website with .gov domain
🛡️Security Headers
HTTP security headers analysis and recommendations.
Security Headers
HTTP security headers analysis
Missing Content-Security-Policy header
HIGHControls resources the browser is allowed to load
Missing X-XSS-Protection header
MEDIUMLegacy XSS protection (deprecated but still recommended)
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
No Cookie Policy found
HIGHGDPR requires clear information about cookie usage
No Cookie Consent Banner found
HIGHGDPR requires explicit consent for non-essential cookies
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 information security framework found
HIGHNIS2 requires documented cybersecurity and information security measures
No vulnerability disclosure policy
MEDIUMNIS2 encourages coordinated vulnerability disclosure
No security policy documentation found
HIGHNIS2 requires documented cybersecurity governance and risk management
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 security contact information
HIGHNIS2 requires clear incident reporting channels
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
No DKIM record found
MEDIUMDKIM adds cryptographic signatures to emails
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
DMARC Details
🏆SSL/TLS Security
Certificate validity and encryption analysis.
SSL/TLS Security
Certificate validity and encryption analysis
SSL Certificate Expires Within 90 Days
MEDIUMSSL certificate expires in 73 days
Partial SSL/TLS Assessment
LOWCompleted 2 of 4 security checks due to time constraints
Certificate Details
OCSP Status
📊DNS 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
Domain Delete Lock Not Enabled
LOWDomain can be deleted without additional verification
Domain Registration Details
- •Privacy/proxy registration detected
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