North Carolina K-12 Email Security Intelligence:
DNS Authentication Profiling of 376 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 376 K-12 LEAs in North Carolina, of which 247 have active domains (65.7% coverage). Domains were scored on the Lokentra 100-point Email Security Index (ESI) rubric (SPF 30 pts + DKIM 30 pts + DMARC 40 pts). North Carolina K-12 districts achieve an average ESI score of 46.6/100, with 34.0% earning Grade A or B (strong posture) and 42.1% receiving Grade F (minimal authentication). Only 48.6% have any DMARC record, and just 34.0% have DMARC at an enforcement level (quarantine or reject) — leaving 51.4% of districts fully vulnerable to email domain spoofing. This report provides entity-level data for all 247 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: North Carolina, K-12 email security, DMARC, SPF, school district cybersecurity, DNS authentication, Google Workspace, education technology

1. Dataset Overview

Table 1. North Carolina K-12 Dataset Summary
MetricValue
Total K-12 LEAs in state376
Regular school districts126
Charter LEAs223
Other LEA types (state-operated, regional, etc.)27
LEAs with active internet domain247 (65.7%)
Domains DNS-profiled247
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. North Carolina K-12 districts collectively operate approximately 2,703 schools.

Table 2. Estimated Population Exposure from K-12 Email Security Gaps — North Carolina
PopulationTotal in DatasetAt Risk (No DMARC, 51.4%)Critically Exposed (Grade F, 42.1%)
Students1,029,843529,339433,563
Parents and guardians2,059,6861,058,678867,127
Staff and educators137,85370,85658,036
Total people3,227,3821,658,8741,358,727

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 — North Carolina K-12
ProtocolNorth CarolinaNational K-12 (ESI)vs. National
SPF (any configuration)67.2%79.7%-12.5pp
DKIM (key published)50.2%59.6%-9.4pp
DMARC (any policy)48.6%55.5%-6.9pp
DMARC at enforcement (quarantine/reject)34.0%~21.0%+13.0pp
DMARC at reject (full enforcement)15.4%~12.2%+3.2pp
No MX records (not receiving email)23.1%~10.0%+13.1pp

3.2 ESI Grade Distribution

Table 4. ESI Score Grade Distribution — North Carolina K-12
GradeScoreDistrictsShareInterpretation
A90–1004719.0%Full enforcement
B70–893715.0%Strong posture
C50–694016.2%Partial protection
D30–49197.7%Weak configuration
F0–2910442.1%Minimal/no authentication
Average score46.6 / 100

3.3 Email Provider Distribution

Table 5. Email Provider Distribution — North Carolina K-12 (top providers)
ProviderDistrictsShare
Google Workspace15663.2%
Microsoft 365197.7%
Barracuda31.2%
GoDaddy20.8%
Proofpoint10.4%

4. District-Level Data

4.1 Top Performing Districts (Best ESI Scores)

Table 6. Top 15 North Carolina K-12 Districts by ESI Score
DistrictDomainCountyProviderSPFDKIMDMARC PolicyScoreGrade
Pitt County Schools pitt.k12.nc.us Pitt County Google Workspace ✓ ✓ reject 100 A
Cumberland County Schools ccs.k12.nc.us Cumberland County Google Workspace ✓ ✓ reject 100 A
Maureen Joy Charter joycharter.org Durham County Google Workspace ✓ ✓ reject 100 A
Anson County Schools ansonschools.org Anson County Google Workspace ✓ ✓ reject 100 A
Henderson Collegiate hendersoncollegiate.org Vance County Google Workspace ✓ ✓ reject 100 A
Brunswick County Schools bcswan.net Brunswick County Google Workspace ✓ ✓ reject 100 A
Wake Preparatory Academy wakeprep.org Franklin County Google Workspace ✓ ✓ reject 100 A
Caldwell County Schools caldwellschools.com Caldwell County Google Workspace ✓ ✓ reject 100 A
Chatham County Schools chatham.k12.nc.us Chatham County Google Workspace ✓ ✓ reject 100 A
Clinton City Schools clinton.k12.nc.us Sampson County Google Workspace ✓ ✓ reject 100 A
Columbus County Schools columbus.k12.nc.us Columbus County Microsoft 365 ✓ ✓ reject 100 A
Franklin County Schools fcschools.net Franklin County Google Workspace ✓ ✓ reject 100 A
Harnett County Schools harnett.k12.nc.us Harnett County Google Workspace ✓ ✓ reject 100 A
Rutherford County Schools rcsnc.org Rutherford County Google Workspace ✓ ✓ reject 100 A
Sampson County Schools sampson.k12.nc.us Sampson County Google Workspace ✓ ✓ reject 100 A

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

Table 7. Bottom 15 North Carolina K-12 Districts by ESI Score
DistrictDomainCountyProviderSPFDKIMDMARC PolicyScoreGrade
Durham Charter School healthystartacademy.com Durham County — ✗ ✗ — 0 F
The Academy of Moore County academyofmoorecounty.com Moore County — ✗ ✗ — 0 F
Arapahoe Charter School arapahoecharter.wordpress.com Pamlico County — ✗ ✗ — 0 F
Rocky Mount Preparatory rockymountprep.org Nash County — ✗ ✗ — 0 F
Carter G Woodson School cartergwoodsonschool.org Forsyth County Google Workspace ✗ ✗ — 0 F
Eno River Academy orangecharterschool.org Orange County Google Workspace ✗ ✗ — 0 F
Sallie B Howard School salliebhowardschool.com Wilson County — ✗ ✗ — 0 F
Lake Norman Charter lncs.org Mecklenburg County — ✗ ✗ — 0 F
Research Triangle Charter researchtriangle.heritageacademies.com Durham County — ✗ ✗ — 0 F
Forsyth Academy forsyth.heritageacademies.com Forsyth County — ✗ ✗ — 0 F
The Mountain Community Sch tmcschool.org Henderson County — ✗ ✗ — 0 F
Greensboro Academy greensboroacademy.org Guilford County — ✗ ✗ — 0 F
Success Institute Charter School successinstitutecharter.com Iredell County — ✗ ✗ — 0 F
Classical Charter Schools of Leland charterdayschool.net Brunswick County — ✗ ✗ — 0 F
Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy tjca.teamcfa.org Rutherford County — ✗ ✗ — 0 F

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

Table 8. North Carolina County Distribution
CountyDistrictsWebsite Coverage
Mecklenburg County4042.5%
Wake County3860.5%
Durham County2259.1%
Guilford County1553.3%
Buncombe County966.7%
New Hanover County933.3%
Forsyth County862.5%
Iredell County862.5%
Gaston County666.7%
Union County666.7%

5. Policy Implications

These findings identify specific, actionable gaps in North Carolina's K-12 email security posture. The 51.4% 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 North Carolina K-12 dataset — 376 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: North CarolinaAll 376 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). North Carolina K-12 Email Security Intelligence: DNS Authentication Profiling of 376 School District LEAs. Lokentra U.S. Email Security Index (ESI) — State Intelligence Series. https://lokentra-site.web.app/research/states/nc-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.