Is nicic.gov Safe? Security Analysis for National Institute of Corrections
Check if nicic.gov is a scam or legitimate. Free security scan and reviews.
AI Summary
The National Institute of Corrections (NIC) operates as a U.S. government agency under the Department of Justice, providing specialized training, technical assistance, and resources to federal, state, local, and tribal corrections agencies. The website serves as a comprehensive portal for corrections professionals, offering access to training programs, resource libraries, and technical support. NIC positions itself as a key leader in advancing correctional policies and practices through innovation and education. Technically, the website is built on Drupal 10 with modern government-compliant design standards using the U.S. Web Design System (USWDS). It leverages Cloudflare for DNS and likely CDN services, and integrates analytics tools such as Google Analytics, Microsoft Clarity, and the Digital Analytics Program. The site is mobile optimized, accessible, and well-structured, providing a good user experience. From a security perspective, the site enforces HTTPS, uses domain transfer protection, and does not expose sensitive data. However, it lacks DNSSEC and explicit security headers, and does not provide visible incident response or security policy pages. The WHOIS data shows privacy protection typical for government domains, with a domain age consistent with a mature government entity. Overall, the NIC website demonstrates a strong business credibility and technical maturity with good content quality and security posture. Areas for improvement include implementing DNSSEC, enhancing security headers, adding explicit cookie consent mechanisms, and publishing incident response contacts to improve transparency and compliance.
Detected Technologies
🧠AI Business Intelligence
Technology stack, business insights, and market analysis powered by AI.
Business Intelligence
Market & Strategic Analysis
NIC holds a strategic position as a federal government agency dedicated to corrections training and resources. Its business model focuses on providing education, technical assistance, and policy support to a broad audience within the corrections sector. The agency benefits from strong trust indicators such as official .gov domain status, consistent branding, and alignment with the Department of Justice. NIC's partnerships with other government entities and use of established analytics and tracking tools indicate a mature digital presence. The website content and service offerings suggest a medium-sized government operation with a focus on leadership development, technical resource provision, and corrections innovation. Growth indicators include ongoing training events, funding opportunities, and a commitment to evolving correctional practices. The agency's ecosystem includes links to DOJ resources and public government services, reinforcing its authoritative role. NIC's digital strategy emphasizes accessibility, user engagement, and resource availability, positioning it well within the government corrections sector.
Security Posture Analysis
Comprehensive Security Assessment
The NIC website exhibits a solid security foundation with mandatory HTTPS, domain transfer protection, and use of Cloudflare DNS services. The absence of DNSSEC is a notable gap that could be addressed to enhance DNS security. The site does not currently display advanced security headers such as Content-Security-Policy or X-Frame-Options, which are recommended best practices. No vulnerabilities or exposed sensitive information were detected in the HTML content. Incident response and security policy information are not explicitly published, which could limit transparency and user trust in security matters. The presence of a vulnerability disclosure policy linked from the DOJ domain is a positive indicator, though a dedicated security.txt file is not found. Overall, the security posture is good but could be improved with additional header implementations and clearer incident response channels.
Strategic Recommendations
Priority Actions for Security Improvement
Enable DNSSEC on the domain to improve DNS integrity and security.
✨Observations
AI-powered comprehensive website and business analysis.
AI-Enhanced Website Analysis
Business Insights
National Institute of Corrections
NIC advances public safety by shaping and enhancing correctional policies and practices through leadership, learning, and innovation. It provides training, technical assistance, information services, and policy/program development assistance to federal, state, and local corrections agencies.
good
consistent
Technical Stack
moderate
good
good
good
Security Assessment
- HTTPS enforced
- Domain status serverTransferProhibited
- No exposed sensitive data in HTML
- Use of Cloudflare DNS
Analytics & Tracking
Advertising & Marketing
Website Quality Assessment
Key Observations
Official U.S. government corrections training and resource website
🛡️Security Headers
HTTP security headers analysis and recommendations.
Security Headers
HTTP security headers analysis
Weak X-XSS-Protection configuration
LOWCurrent value: "1"
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
No Data Protection Officer mentioned
LOWLarge organizations may need to designate a DPO under GDPR
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 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 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
Strict DMARC Alignment
LOWStrict alignment may cause legitimate emails to fail
No BIMI Record
LOWBIMI displays brand logos in email clients
SPF Details
DMARC Details
MTA-STS 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
Partial SSL/TLS Assessment
LOWCompleted 3 of 4 security checks due to time constraints
Protocol Support
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
Service Exposed: SSH
MEDIUMPort 22 (SSH) is publicly accessible - SSH - Secure but can be brute-forced
🔧Technical Analysis
Detailed technical findings and analysis from AI assessment.
Technical Analysis
Comprehensive security assessment findings