Maine K-12 Email Security Intelligence:
DNS Authentication Profiling of 281 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 281 K-12 LEAs in Maine, of which 175 have active domains (62.3% coverage). Domains were scored on the Lokentra 100-point Email Security Index (ESI) rubric (SPF 30 pts + DKIM 30 pts + DMARC 40 pts). Maine K-12 districts achieve an average ESI score of 49.6/100, with 28.6% earning Grade A or B (strong posture) and 32.6% receiving Grade F (minimal authentication). Only 55.4% have any DMARC record, and just 26.9% have DMARC at an enforcement level (quarantine or reject) — leaving 44.6% of districts fully vulnerable to email domain spoofing. This report provides entity-level data for all 175 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: Maine, K-12 email security, DMARC, SPF, school district cybersecurity, DNS authentication, Google Workspace, education technology

1. Dataset Overview

Table 1. Maine K-12 Dataset Summary
Metric	Value
Total K-12 LEAs in state	281
Regular school districts	259
Charter LEAs	10
Other LEA types (state-operated, regional, etc.)	12
LEAs with active internet domain	175 (62.3%)
Domains DNS-profiled	175
Data freshness (NCES CCD)	2024-2025 school year
DNS scan date	April 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. Maine K-12 districts collectively operate approximately 586 schools.

Table 2. Estimated Population Exposure from K-12 Email Security Gaps — Maine
Population	Total in Dataset	At Risk (No DMARC, 44.6%)	Critically Exposed (Grade F, 32.6%)
Students	223,266	99,576	72,784
Parents and guardians	446,532	199,153	145,569
Staff and educators	29,886	13,329	9,742
Total people	699,684	312,059	228,096

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 — Maine K-12
Protocol	Maine	National K-12 (ESI)	vs. National
SPF (any configuration)	71.4%	79.7%	-8.3pp
DKIM (key published)	60.0%	59.6%	+0.4pp
DMARC (any policy)	55.4%	55.5%	-0.1pp
DMARC at enforcement (quarantine/reject)	26.9%	~21.0%	+5.9pp
DMARC at reject (full enforcement)	10.9%	~12.2%	-1.3pp
No MX records (not receiving email)	11.4%	~10.0%	+1.4pp

3.2 ESI Grade Distribution

Table 4. ESI Score Grade Distribution — Maine K-12
Grade	Score	Districts	Share	Interpretation
A	90–100	22	12.6%	Full enforcement
B	70–89	28	16.0%	Strong posture
C	50–69	52	29.7%	Partial protection
D	30–49	16	9.1%	Weak configuration
F	0–29	57	32.6%	Minimal/no authentication
Average score		49.6 / 100

3.3 Email Provider Distribution

Table 5. Email Provider Distribution — Maine K-12 (top providers)
Provider	Districts	Share
Google Workspace	140	80.0%
Microsoft 365	3	1.7%
Mimecast	1	0.6%
Sophos	1	0.6%
GoDaddy	1	0.6%

4. District-Level Data

4.1 Top Performing Districts (Best ESI Scores)

Table 6. Top 15 Maine K-12 Districts by ESI Score
District	Domain	County	Provider	SPF	DKIM	DMARC Policy	Score	Grade
Biddeford Public Schools	`biddefordschools.me`	York County	Google Workspace	✓	✓	reject	100	A
Ellsworth Public Schools	`ellsworthschools.org`	Hancock County	Google Workspace	✓	✓	reject	100	A
Scarborough Public Schools	`scarboroughschools.org`	Cumberland County	Google Workspace	✓	✓	reject	100	A
RSU 49/MSAD 49	`msad49.org`	Somerset County	Google Workspace	✓	✓	reject	100	A
RSU 53/MSAD 53	`msad53.org`	Somerset County	Google Workspace	✓	✓	reject	100	A
RSU 74/MSAD 74	`carrabec.org`	Somerset County	Google Workspace	✓	✓	reject	100	A
RSU 13	`rsu13.org`	Knox County	—	✓	✓	reject	100	A
RSU 20	`rsu20.org`	Waldo County	Google Workspace	✓	✓	reject	100	A
Education in Unorganized Terr	`maine.gov`	Kennebec County	Microsoft 365	✓	✓	reject	95	A
RSU 08/MSAD 08	`vinalhavenschool.org`	Knox County	Google Workspace	✓	✓	reject	95	A
Winthrop Public Schools	`winthropschools.org`	Kennebec County	Google Workspace	✓	✓	reject	95	A
RSU 18	`rsu18.org`	Kennebec County	Google Workspace	✓	✓	reject	95	A
RSU 24	`rsu24.org`	Hancock County	Google Workspace	✓	✓	reject	95	A
St George Public Schools	`stgeorgemsu.org`	Knox County	Google Workspace	✓	✓	reject	95	A
RSU 71	`rsu71.org`	Waldo County	—	✓	✓	reject	95	A

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

Table 7. Bottom 15 Maine K-12 Districts by ESI Score
District	Domain	County	Provider	SPF	DKIM	DMARC Policy	Grade
Athens Public Schools	`sites.google.com`	Somerset County	—	✗	✗	—	F
Cutler Public Schools	`bayridgeschool.org`	Washington County	Google Workspace	✗	✗	—	F
Fayette Public Schools	`fayettecentralschool.org`	Kennebec County	—	✗	✗	—	F
Alexander Public Schools	`alexanderelementary.org`	Washington County	Google Workspace	✗	✗	—	F
Trenton Public Schools	`mdirss.net`	Hancock County	—	✗	✗	—	F
Lincolnville Public Schools	`union.fivetowns.net`	Waldo County	—	✗	✗	—	F
Willimantic Public Schools	`golakers.org`	Piscataquis County	—	✗	✗	—	F
Charlotte Public Schools	`charlotte.u104.k12.me.us`	Washington County	—	✗	✗	—	F
East Range CSD	`eastrangeii.wordpress.com`	Washington County	—	✗	✗	—	F
RSU 37/MSAD 37	`msad37.me`	Washington County	—	✗	✗	—	F
Coplin Plt Public Schools	`coplinplantation.maine.gov`	Franklin County	—	✗	✗	—	F
East Millinocket Public Schools	`eastmillinocketschools.org`	Penobscot County	—	✗	✗	—	F
Hermon Public Schools	`hsd.hermon.net`	Penobscot County	—	✗	✗	—	F
Rockland-Region 8	`midcoast.mainecte.org`	Knox County	—	✗	✗	—	F
Monhegan Plt School Dept	`monheganschool.org`	Lincoln County	Google Workspace	✗	✗	—	F

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

Table 8. Maine County Distribution
County	Districts	Website Coverage
Washington County	45	73.3%
Penobscot County	40	85.0%
Aroostook County	29	79.3%
Cumberland County	24	91.7%
Hancock County	24	91.7%
Somerset County	16	62.5%
Lincoln County	15	100.0%
York County	14	100.0%
Kennebec County	13	100.0%
Oxford County	13	84.6%

5. Policy Implications

These findings identify specific, actionable gaps in Maine's K-12 email security posture. The 44.6% 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:

Immediate risk: 57 districts (32.6%) have Grade F scores, indicating minimal or no email authentication. These represent the highest-priority remediation targets.
Mid-tier stagnation: 52 districts (29.7%) are in the C range — typically have SPF but no DMARC or weak DMARC (p=none). Upgrading to p=quarantine would move them to B without infrastructure changes.
Provider leverage: Google Workspace (used by 80.0% of scored districts) provides automated SPF/DKIM configuration. Districts on Google Workspace with Grade F scores have misconfigured or missing DMARC — a free and simple fix.

6. Data Availability

The full Maine K-12 dataset — 281 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
Tier	Scope	Suggested Use
State Pack: Maine	All 281 K-12 LEAs, full DNS profile + CCD enrichment	Regional studies, state policy, outreach
K-12 National	All 50 states, 20,021+ K-12 LEAs	National K-12 cybersecurity research
Full Registry	801,359+ entities across all sectors	Comprehensive multi-sector research
API + Updates	Quarterly re-scan, REST API	Longitudinal studies, live dashboards

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

Citation: Lokentra Research Team (2026). Maine K-12 Email Security Intelligence: DNS Authentication Profiling of 281 School District LEAs. Lokentra U.S. Email Security Index (ESI) — State Intelligence Series. https://lokentra-site.web.app/research/states/me-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.

Maine K-12 Email Security Intelligence:DNS Authentication Profiling of 281 School District LEAs