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Is montana.edu a Scam? Security Check Results - Montana State University

montana.edu Security Report Summary

montana.edu received a security score of 63 out of 100 in Guard's comprehensive security analysis, classified as "Moderate Risk". This report covers Montana State University's website security posture. Montana State University operates in the Education industry in United States.

Montana State University is a large, top-tier research university located in Bozeman, Montana, serving a broad audience including students, faculty, staff, alumni, and researchers. The institution offers over 250 academic programs and emphasizes research, community outreach, and student life. The website reflects a mature digital presence with comprehensive content, clear navigation, and consistent branding. Technically, the site uses a modern technology stack including jQuery, Google Analytics, Microsoft Clarity, and Google Tag Manager, hosted likely on a platform using OmniUpdate CMS. Security posture is strong with HTTPS enforced and use of reCAPTCHA, though some security headers could be improved. Privacy compliance is partial, with a clear privacy policy but lacking visible cookie consent mechanisms. Overall, the site is professional, trustworthy, and well-optimized for mobile and accessibility.

The security scan identified 31 findings across security headers, SSL/TLS, DNS health, email security, GDPR compliance, and NIS2 compliance analysis modules.

Technologies detected: jQuery 1.10.2, Google Analytics, Google Tag Manager, Microsoft Clarity, Fathom Analytics, Slick Carousel, Google reCAPTCHA v2/v3.

About this security scan

Guard performs automated security assessments of websites by analyzing SSL/TLS certificates, HTTP security headers, DNS configuration, email authentication protocols (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), GDPR compliance indicators, NIS2 directive compliance, network exposure, and AI-powered business intelligence. Each report provides domain-specific findings, risk scores, and actionable recommendations.

M

Is montana.edu Safe? Security Analysis for Montana State University

https://montana.edu

Check if montana.edu is a scam or legitimate. Free security scan and reviews.

EducationUnited Stateslarge
jQuery 1.10.2Google AnalyticsGoogle Tag ManagerMicrosoft ClarityFathom Analytics+2 more
Analyzed 7/10/2025Completed 6:44:25 AM8mo ago
63
Security Score
MEDIUM RISK

Above Education avg (55)

10,000+

Domains scanned

500+

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Domainmontana.edu
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AI Summary

Montana State University is a large, top-tier research university located in Bozeman, Montana, serving a broad audience including students, faculty, staff, alumni, and researchers. The institution offers over 250 academic programs and emphasizes research, community outreach, and student life. The website reflects a mature digital presence with comprehensive content, clear navigation, and consistent branding. Technically, the site uses a modern technology stack including jQuery, Google Analytics, Microsoft Clarity, and Google Tag Manager, hosted likely on a platform using OmniUpdate CMS. Security posture is strong with HTTPS enforced and use of reCAPTCHA, though some security headers could be improved. Privacy compliance is partial, with a clear privacy policy but lacking visible cookie consent mechanisms. Overall, the site is professional, trustworthy, and well-optimized for mobile and accessibility.

Detected Technologies

jQuery 1.10.2Google AnalyticsGoogle Tag ManagerMicrosoft ClarityFathom AnalyticsSlick CarouselGoogle reCAPTCHA v2/v3

9 urgent findings need attention

9 high

  • + 1 more findings in the full report below
Continuous monitoring

Keep montana.edu under constant watch

Guard tracks your live infrastructure daily: certificate expiry, DNS & mail authentication drift, uptime changes, subdomain inventory, and unexpected tracker or content shifts. A full timeline captures every diff so you can prove remediation and spot regressions instantly.

Security drift alerts

Risk score drops, new high-severity issues, and header hardening gaps

Compliance watch

GDPR / NIS2 posture changes with governance evidence snapshots

Infrastructure surface

Unexpected open services, SSL expiry, DNS & email authentication changes

Content & tracker intelligence

Marketing tech shifts, analytics drift, and AI recommendation updates

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Security Headers

8 findings

15/100

GDPR Compliance

4 findings

53/100

NIS2 Compliance

8 findings

17/100

Email Security

4 findings

75/100

🧠AI Business Intelligence

Technology stack, business insights, and market analysis powered by AI.

Business Intelligence

Market & Strategic Analysis

Montana State University holds a strong market position as Montana's largest university and a recognized R-1 research institution. Its business model is public education and research, supported by state funding and donations. The university targets prospective and current students, faculty, researchers, and the community. Key services include undergraduate and graduate education, research programs, student support, and community engagement. The university maintains partnerships with extension services, agricultural research stations, and cultural institutions. The website's extensive resources and social media presence indicate active engagement and growth orientation.

Extracted Contact Information

Marketing Intelligence Data

Physical Addresses (1)

Security Posture Analysis

Comprehensive Security Assessment

The website demonstrates a mature security posture with HTTPS enforced, use of Google reCAPTCHA to protect forms, and no visible exposure of sensitive data. Security headers are present but could be enhanced with additional headers like Content-Security-Policy and Strict-Transport-Security. No vulnerabilities or suspicious scripts were detected. However, the absence of explicit incident response contacts and security policies is a gap. Privacy compliance is partial, lacking a cookie consent banner, which is recommended for GDPR and other privacy regulations. Overall, the security posture is strong but can be improved with better privacy and security policy transparency.

Strategic Recommendations

Priority Actions for Security Improvement

1

Implement a visible cookie consent banner to comply with privacy regulations and improve user trust.

Observations

AI-powered comprehensive website and business analysis.

AI-Enhanced Website Analysis

Business Insights

Company:

Montana State University

Description:

Montana State is Montana's largest university. A premier and top tier research university, MSU educates more Montanans than any institution in the state.

Key Services:
Undergraduate and Graduate EducationResearch and Economic DevelopmentCommunity Outreach and EngagementStudent Life and Support Services
Content Quality:

excellent

Branding:

consistent

Technical Stack

Technologies:
jQuery 1.10.2Google AnalyticsGoogle Tag ManagerMicrosoft ClarityFathom AnalyticsSlick CarouselGoogle reCAPTCHA v2/v3
Performance:

moderate

Mobile:

good

Accessibility:

good

SEO:

good

Security Assessment

Security Score:
85/100
Best Practices:
  • HTTPS enforced
  • Use of Google reCAPTCHA for forms
  • No exposed sensitive data in HTML
  • Use of security-related meta tags

Analytics & Tracking

Services:
Google AnalyticsMicrosoft ClarityFathom AnalyticsCrazy Egg
Tracking Level:moderate
Privacy Compliance:basic

Advertising & Marketing

Tracking Pixels:
Microsoft ClarityFathom AnalyticsCrazy Egg
Transparency Level:basic

Website Quality Assessment

Design Quality:excellent
User Experience:excellent
Content Relevance:excellent
Navigation Clarity:excellent
Professionalism:excellent
Trustworthiness:high

Key Observations

1

Website is fully accessible with rich content and navigation

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🛡️Security Headers

HTTP security headers analysis and recommendations.

Security Headers

HTTP security headers analysis

15/100
Score

Missing Strict-Transport-Security header

HIGH

Forces HTTPS connections

Missing X-Frame-Options header

HIGH

Prevents clickjacking attacks

Missing X-Content-Type-Options header

MEDIUM

Prevents MIME type sniffing

Missing Content-Security-Policy header

HIGH

Controls resources the browser is allowed to load

Missing X-XSS-Protection header

MEDIUM

Legacy XSS protection (deprecated but still recommended)

Missing Referrer-Policy header

LOW

Controls referrer information sent with requests

Missing Permissions-Policy header

MEDIUM

Controls browser features and APIs

Sensitive data may be cached

LOW

Cache-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

53/100
Score

No Cookie Policy found

HIGH

GDPR requires clear information about cookie usage

No Cookie Consent Banner found

HIGH

GDPR requires explicit consent for non-essential cookies

No Data Protection Officer mentioned

LOW

Large organizations may need to designate a DPO under GDPR

Privacy policy may not be GDPR compliant

MEDIUM

Privacy policy lacks explicit GDPR compliance elements

GDPR Compliance Analysis

Privacy Policy85% confidence
Cookie Policy0% confidence
Contact Information Found90% confidence
phone

🛡️NIS2 Compliance

Network & Information Security Directive compliance assessment.

NIS2 Compliance

Network & Information Security Directive

17/100
Score

No information security framework found

HIGH

NIS2 requires documented cybersecurity and information security measures

No vulnerability disclosure policy

MEDIUM

NIS2 encourages coordinated vulnerability disclosure

No security policy documentation found

HIGH

NIS2 requires documented cybersecurity governance and risk management

No incident response procedures found

HIGH

NIS2 requires documented incident response and business continuity plans

No business continuity planning found

MEDIUM

NIS2 emphasizes operational resilience and business continuity

No security contact information

HIGH

NIS2 requires clear incident reporting channels

No vulnerability reporting mechanism

MEDIUM

Clear vulnerability reporting supports coordinated disclosure

No NIS2 reference found

LOW

Consider explicitly mentioning NIS2 compliance efforts

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📧Email Security

SPF, DKIM, and DMARC validation and email security assessment.

Email Security

SPF, DKIM, and DMARC validation

75/100
Score

DMARC not enforcing

MEDIUM

DMARC policy is set to "none"

No BIMI Record

LOW

BIMI displays brand logos in email clients

No MTA-STS Policy

MEDIUM

MTA-STS enforces TLS for email delivery

No TLS-RPT Record

LOW

TLS-RPT provides reporting for email TLS issues

SPF
Sender Policy Framework
DKIM
DomainKeys Identified Mail
DMARC
Domain-based Message Authentication
MX Records
Mail Exchange Records
BIMI
Brand Indicators
MTA-STS
Mail Transfer Agent Security
TLS-RPT
TLS Reporting
DNSSEC
DNS Security
SPF Details
Record:
v=spf1 include:%{i}._ip.%{h}._ehlo.%{d}._spf.vali.email include:_spf.mlsend.com ~all
DNS Lookups:2/10
Policy:~all
DKIM Selectors Found
Selector:k1(1296-bit rsa)
Selector:k2(1416-bit rsa)
Selector:selector1(1296-bit rsa)
Selector:s1(1440-bit rsa)
DMARC Details
Policy:none
Subdomain Policy:none
Aggregate Reports:dmarc_agg@vali.email
Forensic Reports:mhitch+vmruf@net3.msu.montana.edu

🏆SSL/TLS Security

Certificate validity and encryption analysis.

SSL/TLS Security

Certificate validity and encryption analysis

75/100
Score

HSTS Not Enabled

MEDIUM

HTTP Strict Transport Security (HSTS) is not configured

Mixed Content Detected

MEDIUM

26 resources loaded over insecure HTTP

Partial SSL/TLS Assessment

LOW

Completed 3 of 4 security checks due to time constraints

Certificate Details

Subject:www.montana.edu
Issuer:InCommon RSA Server CA 2
Valid Until:3/7/2026 (240 days)
SANs:www.montana.edu, *.montana.edu

OCSP Status

OCSP Stapling Disabled

📊DNS Health

DNS configuration and security assessment.

DNS Health

DNS configuration and security assessment

80/100
Score

DNSSEC Not Enabled

MEDIUM

DNSSEC is not configured for this domain

CAA Records Not Configured

LOW

Certificate Authority Authorization (CAA) records not found

DMARC Policy Set to None

LOW

DMARC is configured but not enforcing any policy

Domain Registration Details

Expiry Risk
none(489 days)

DNS Records

A Records:153.90.3.209, 153.90.3.216, 4.246.40.240
Name Servers:
cudess2.umt.eduDNS only
dns1.msu.montana.eduDNS only
dns2.msu.montana.eduDNS only
MX Records:
50: montana-edu.mail.protection.outlook.com
SOA:Serial: 2013098847, TTL: 86400s

DNSSEC Status

DNSSEC Not Enabled

DNS Performance

Resolution Time:205ms

SPF Analysis

SPF Record:
v=spf1 include:%{i}._ip.%{h}._ehlo.%{d}._spf.vali.email include:_spf.mlsend.com ~all

Network Security

Port scanning and network exposure analysis.

Network Security

Port scanning and network exposure analysis

100/100
Score

Good Network Security Posture

LOW

No unnecessary services detected on common risky ports

How does montana.edu compare?

See how montana.edu stacks up against similar websites in the same industry.

🔧Technical Analysis

Detailed technical findings and analysis from AI assessment.

Technical Analysis

Comprehensive security assessment findings

Additional Findings

The website uses a combination of legacy and modern JavaScript libraries, including jQuery 1.10.2 and Slick Carousel for UI components, alongside advanced analytics tools like Google Analytics, Microsoft Clarity, Fathom Analytics, and Crazy Egg. The CMS appears to be OmniUpdate, a platform common in higher education. The site is mobile responsive with good accessibility features and SEO optimization. Performance is moderate, likely due to multiple external scripts and rich media content. There is an opportunity to modernize the tech stack by updating jQuery and optimizing script loading. Overall, the technical infrastructure supports a robust and user-friendly experience but could benefit from modernization and performance tuning.
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39.90 €one-time • Incl. 21% VAT

Marketing Intelligence

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49.90 €one-time • Incl. 21% VAT

Plan Comparison

FeaturePDF ReportMarketing+
Full security analysis
Professional PDF export
Email delivery
Lifetime access + unlock code
Contact emails & phones
Marketing outreach data

Already purchased?

Order summary

Domainmontana.edu
Access tierFull report or marketing add-on

Digital reports are delivered immediately after payment. By continuing you acknowledge the withdrawal waiver described in our Returns & Refunds policy.

VisaMastercardApple PayGoogle Pay

Secure payments processed via EveryPay. Prices in EUR; Incl. 21% VAT.

SEQ SIA

Lastadijas 12 k-3, Riga, Latvia, LV-1050

Reg. No. 40203410806 • VAT LV40203410806

Support: guard@offseq.com+371 2256 5353

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