Overview
Findings
Actions
Details
Related
AI-Generated Summary
What this means
johnshopkins.edu scored 82/100, demonstrating a strong security posture. Minor improvements are noted below.
Critical gaps in: HSTS Header. Positive signals: Known Breaches, TLS Configuration, Security Headers all passed.
3 action items identified, including 0 critical. The issues are configuration gaps, not architectural problems. A focused remediation effort of 2–5 days could address all findings.
How johnshopkins.edu compares
Grade distribution across 2519 companies we've scanned. johnshopkins.edu scores better than 72% of them.
79
A+
25
A
184
A-
190
B+
73
B
351
B-
121
C+
113
C
324
C-
117
D+
93
D
236
D-
613
F
johnshopkins.edu — Grade B- (82/100)
2519 companies scanned
Security checks
Each check inspects a different part of johnshopkins.edu's public security setup. Green means healthy, yellow needs attention, red is a problem.
HSTS Header
Strict-Transport-Security header is missing. Connections can be downgraded to HTTP via man-in-the-middle attacks.
DNS Configuration
Strengths: 2 nameservers configured (ens1.jhmi.edu., ens1.jhu.edu.); 1 MX records present; Zone transfers properly restricted. Issues: DNSSEC not configured — DNS responses can be spoofed.
Certificate Hygiene
Strengths: Certificate valid, 30 days remaining; Issued by Internet2. Issues: Wildcard certificate in use — broader attack surface if compromised.
Known Breaches
No known breaches found in public disclosure databases.
TLS Configuration
TLSv1.3 negotiated with TLS_AES_256_GCM_SHA384 (256-bit). Strong configuration with no deprecated protocols or weak ciphers detected.
Security Headers
4/5 security headers present. Missing: CSP.
CVE Exposure
Detected technologies: cloudflare. (cloudflare detected but excluded from CVE matching — upstream infrastructure). All detected technologies are upstream CDN/proxy infrastructure. No application-level software versions exposed.
DMARC / Email Security
Strengths: DMARC policy set to reject (strongest); SPF record present with hard-fail (-all); DKIM configured (selectors: k1).
Recommended actions
3 items
Steps to improve johnshopkins.edu's security grade, ranked by impact.
1
Enable HSTS (HTTP Strict Transport Security)
The HSTS header is missing on johnshopkins.edu. Without it, connections can be downgraded from HTTPS to HTTP via man-in-the-middle attacks. This is a straightforward server configuration change.
Compliance impact
PCI-DSS 4.0Req 6.4.1
Required application security controls
NIST 800-53SC-8
Transmission confidentiality and integrity
How to fix this
1
Add header: Strict-Transport-Security: max-age=31536000; includeSubDomains; preload
2
Verify all subdomains support HTTPS before adding includeSubDomains
3
Test with: curl -sI https://johnshopkins.edu | grep -i strict
4
Submit to hstspreload.org after confirming the header is correct
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2
Enable DNSSEC on your domain
Without DNSSEC, DNS responses for johnshopkins.edu can be spoofed, potentially redirecting users to malicious sites. This requires coordination with your domain registrar to publish DS records.
Compliance impact
NIST 800-53SC-20
Secure name/address resolution service
How to fix this
1
Check if your DNS provider supports DNSSEC (Cloudflare, Route53, etc.)
2
Enable DNSSEC signing in your DNS provider dashboard
3
Add the DS record to your registrar for .edu TLD
4
Verify: dig +dnssec johnshopkins.edu
3
Review certificate configuration
Certificate issues found for johnshopkins.edu: wildcard certificate in use. Wildcard certificates have a broader blast radius if compromised. Ensure auto-renewal is configured to prevent expiry. These are operational hygiene items, not immediate security risks.
How to fix this
1
Verify auto-renewal is configured (Let's Encrypt: certbot renew --dry-run)
2
Consider replacing wildcard cert with individual certs for critical subdomains
3
Consolidate certificate issuance to 1–2 trusted CAs
At a glance
Key data points from the scan.
TLS Version
TLSv1.3
TLSv1.3 negotiated with TLS_AES_256_GCM_SHA384 (256-bit). Strong configuration with no deprecated protocols or weak ciphers detected.
DMARC Policy
p=reject
Strengths: DMARC policy set to reject (strongest); SPF record present with hard-fail (-all); DKIM configured (selectors: k1).
SPF Record
Present
v=spf1 include:spf1.jh.edu ip4:162.129.199.0/24 ip4:66.242.34.13 ip4:12.181.141.210 ip4:162.129.251.
Security Headers
4/5 present
Missing: CSP
HSTS
Not enabled
Strict-Transport-Security header is missing. Connections can be downgraded to HTTP via man-in-the-middle attacks.
SSL Certificate
Issues
Strengths: Certificate valid, 30 days remaining; Issued by Internet2. Issues: Wildcard certificate in use — broader attack surface if compromised.
DNSSEC
Not enabled
Strengths: 2 nameservers configured (ens1.jhmi.edu., ens1.jhu.edu.); 1 MX records present; Zone transfers properly restricted. Issues: DNSSEC not configured — DNS responses can be spoofed.