Delaware K-12 Email Security Intelligence:
DNS Authentication Profiling of 45 School District LEAs

Lokentra Research Team
Lokentra U.S. Email Security Index (ESI) — State Intelligence Series
April 22, 2026
research@monitorworkspace.com • monitorworkspace.com/scorecard

Abstract

We present DNS email security profiling for 45 K-12 LEAs in Delaware, of which 41 have active domains (91.1% coverage). Domains were scored on the Lokentra 100-point Email Security Index (ESI) rubric (SPF 30 pts + DKIM 30 pts + DMARC 40 pts). Delaware K-12 districts achieve an average ESI score of 26.3/100, with 17.1% earning Grade A or B (strong posture) and 61.0% receiving Grade F (minimal authentication). Only 26.8% have any DMARC record, and just 19.5% have DMARC at an enforcement level (quarantine or reject) — leaving 73.2% of districts fully vulnerable to email domain spoofing. This report provides entity-level data for all 41 scored domains including provider classification, authentication status, and ESI score, sourced from NCES CCD 2024-2025 and live DNS resolution conducted April 22, 2026.

Keywords: Delaware, K-12 email security, DMARC, SPF, school district cybersecurity, DNS authentication, Google Workspace, education technology

1. Dataset Overview

Table 1. Delaware K-12 Dataset Summary
MetricValue
Total K-12 LEAs in state45
Regular school districts19
Charter LEAs23
Other LEA types (state-operated, regional, etc.)3
LEAs with active internet domain41 (91.1%)
Domains DNS-profiled41
Data freshness (NCES CCD)2024-2025 school year
DNS scan dateApril 22, 2026

2. The Human Impact: Populations at Risk

To estimate human exposure, NCES national averages are applied to CCD 2024-2025 operational school counts: 381 students per school, 51 staff per school, and 2 parents or guardians per student. Delaware K-12 districts collectively operate approximately 235 schools.

Table 2. Estimated Population Exposure from K-12 Email Security Gaps — Delaware
PopulationTotal in DatasetAt Risk (No DMARC, 73.2%)Critically Exposed (Grade F, 61.0%)
Students89,53565,53954,616
Parents and guardians179,070131,079109,232
Staff and educators11,9858,7737,310
Total people280,590205,391171,159

Estimates based on NCES national averages. Individual district enrollment data can be linked via NCES LEAID for precise counts.

3. Authentication Findings

3.1 Protocol Adoption

Table 3. Email Authentication Protocol Adoption — Delaware K-12
ProtocolDelawareNational K-12 (ESI)vs. National
SPF (any configuration)41.5%79.7%-38.2pp
DKIM (key published)24.4%59.6%-35.2pp
DMARC (any policy)26.8%55.5%-28.7pp
DMARC at enforcement (quarantine/reject)19.5%~21.0%-1.5pp
DMARC at reject (full enforcement)14.6%~12.2%+2.4pp
No MX records (not receiving email)34.1%~10.0%+24.1pp

3.2 ESI Grade Distribution

Table 4. ESI Score Grade Distribution — Delaware K-12
GradeScoreDistrictsShareInterpretation
A90–100614.6%Full enforcement
B70–8912.4%Strong posture
C50–6912.4%Partial protection
D30–49819.5%Weak configuration
F0–292561.0%Minimal/no authentication
Average score26.3 / 100

3.3 Email Provider Distribution

Table 5. Email Provider Distribution — Delaware K-12 (top providers)
ProviderDistrictsShare
Google Workspace1536.6%
Microsoft 365614.6%
GoDaddy24.9%

4. District-Level Data

4.1 Top Performing Districts (Best ESI Scores)

Table 6. Top 15 Delaware K-12 Districts by ESI Score
DistrictDomainCountyProviderSPFDKIMDMARC PolicyScoreGrade
Capital School District capital.k12.de.us Kent County Microsoft 365 ✓ ✓ reject 95 A
Delmar School District delmar.k12.de.us Sussex County Microsoft 365 ✓ ✓ reject 95 A
Lake Forest School District lf.k12.de.us Kent County Microsoft 365 ✓ ✓ reject 95 A
Laurel School District laurel.k12.de.us Sussex County Microsoft 365 ✓ ✓ reject 95 A
Smyrna School District smyrna.k12.de.us Kent County Microsoft 365 ✓ ✓ reject 95 A
New Castle County Vocational-Technical School District nccvt.k12.de.us New Castle County Microsoft 365 ✓ ✓ reject 95 A
Freire Charter School Wilmington freirewilmington.org New Castle County Google Workspace ✓ ✓ quarantine 85 B
First State Military Academy fsmilitary.org Kent County Google Workspace ✓ ✓ — 55 C
Las Americas Aspira Academy aspiraacademy.org New Castle County Google Workspace ✓ ✗ none 35 D
Caesar Rodney School District crk12.org Kent County — ✓ ✗ none 35 D
Sussex Technical School District sussexvt.org Sussex County — ✓ ✗ none 35 D
Charter School of New Castle charterschoolnewcastle.org New Castle County Google Workspace ✓ ✗ — 30 D
Appoquinimink School District apposchooldistrict.com New Castle County Google Workspace ✗ ✓ — 30 D
Academia Antonia Alonso academiacharterschool.org New Castle County — ✓ ✗ — 30 D
Colonial School District colonialschooldistrict.org New Castle County Google Workspace ✗ ✓ — 30 D

4.2 Districts Most in Need of Improvement (Lowest ESI Scores)

Table 7. Bottom 15 Delaware K-12 Districts by ESI Score
DistrictDomainCountyProviderSPFDKIMDMARC PolicyScoreGrade
Sussex Academy sussexacademy.org Sussex County Google Workspace ✗ ✗ — 0 F
Newark Charter School newarkcharterschool.org New Castle County — ✗ ✗ — 0 F
Positive Outcomes Charter School positiveoutcomescs.org Kent County — ✗ ✗ — 0 F
Edison (Thomas A.) Charter School thomasedison.charter.k12.de.us New Castle County — ✗ ✗ — 0 F
Charter School of Wilmington charterschool.org New Castle County Google Workspace ✗ ✗ — 0 F
Providence Creek Academy Charter School pcasaints.org Kent County — ✗ ✗ — 0 F
MOT Charter School motcharter.com New Castle County — ✗ ✗ — 0 F
Academy of Dover Charter School aodcharter.org Kent County Google Workspace ✗ ✗ — 0 F
Odyssey Charter School odysseycharterschooldel.com New Castle County GoDaddy ✗ ✗ — 0 F
Gateway Charter School gatewaylabschool.org New Castle County Google Workspace ✗ ✗ — 0 F
Early College High School at Del State echs.desu.edu Kent County Google Workspace ✗ ✗ — 0 F
Great Oaks Charter School wilmington.greatoakscharter.org New Castle County — ✗ ✗ — 0 F
Sussex Montessori School sussexmontessoricharter.com Sussex County — ✗ ✗ — 0 F
Cape Henlopen School District capehenlopenschools.com Sussex County Google Workspace ✗ ✗ — 0 F
Indian River School District irsd.net Sussex County GoDaddy ✗ ✗ — 0 F

4.3 County-Level Summary (Top 10 Counties by District Count)

Table 8. Delaware County Distribution
CountyDistrictsWebsite Coverage
New Castle County2387.0%
Kent County1291.7%
Sussex County10100.0%

5. Policy Implications

These findings identify specific, actionable gaps in Delaware's K-12 email security posture. The 73.2% DMARC gap represents districts that can be impersonated by any sender, enabling phishing campaigns targeting parents, students, and educators with no authentication failure. Key observations:

6. Data Availability

The full Delaware K-12 dataset — 45 entities with NCES CCD enrichment (phone, address, grade span, school count, LEAID) and DNS authentication profiles — is available as part of the Lokentra ESI State Pack.

Table 9. Licensing Tiers
TierScopeSuggested Use
State Pack: DelawareAll 45 K-12 LEAs, full DNS profile + CCD enrichmentRegional studies, state policy, outreach
K-12 NationalAll 50 states, 20,021+ K-12 LEAsNational K-12 cybersecurity research
Full Registry801,359+ entities across all sectorsComprehensive multi-sector research
API + UpdatesQuarterly re-scan, REST APILongitudinal studies, live dashboards

Contact: research@monitorworkspace.com — Free demo at monitorworkspace.com/scorecard

Citation: Lokentra Research Team (2026). Delaware K-12 Email Security Intelligence: DNS Authentication Profiling of 45 School District LEAs. Lokentra U.S. Email Security Index (ESI) — State Intelligence Series. https://lokentra-site.web.app/research/states/de-k12-paper.html

Data sources: NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-2025; DNS records resolved via Google Public DNS (8.8.8.8) and Cloudflare (1.1.1.1). All entity data derived from publicly accessible government registries.

National baseline figures from Lokentra U.S. Education Sector Email Security Intelligence Dataset (March 2026). See education-dataset-paper.html for full methodology.