# BeaverCheck Audit Report — https://merriam-webster.com **Date:** April 16, 2026 **URL:** https://merriam-webster.com **Overall Grade:** C (74/100) **Report:** https://beavercheck.com/results/dbeac7ab-c2c4-4628-85f8-45085e0b4cc8 ## Top Findings 1. **[CRITICAL]** Content-Security-Policy header is missing — Security > Security Headers 2. **[CRITICAL]** HSTS header is missing — Security > Security Headers 3. **[CRITICAL]** No Content-Security-Policy header found — Security > Content Security Policy 4. **[CRITICAL]** 2 control(s) without accessible label — Accessibility > Form Accessibility 5. **[CRITICAL]** 3 image-only link(s) without alt text — Accessibility > Link & Button Quality --- ## Lighthouse Scores | Category | Score | |----------|-------| | Performance | 22 | | Accessibility | 88 | | Best Practices | 73 | | SEO | 92 | --- ## Security ### Security Headers (F — 5/100) *1 of 10 headers properly configured* - **[CRITICAL]** HSTS header is missing — Strict-Transport-Security forces browsers to use HTTPS, preventing downgrade attacks. Add the header with a max-age of at least 1 year. - **[WARNING]** X-Content-Type-Options header is missing — This header prevents MIME-type sniffing, which can lead to XSS attacks. Set it to 'nosniff'. - **[WARNING]** X-Frame-Options header is missing — This header prevents clickjacking by controlling who can embed your page in a frame. Set it to DENY or SAMEORIGIN. - **[WARNING]** Referrer-Policy header is missing — Controls how much referrer information is sent with requests. Set to 'strict-origin-when-cross-origin' or stricter. - **[WARNING]** Permissions-Policy header is missing — Controls which browser features (camera, microphone, geolocation) are allowed. Set it to restrict unused features. - **[CRITICAL]** Content-Security-Policy header is missing — CSP is the most important header for preventing XSS attacks. See the CSP section for detailed analysis. - **[WARNING]** Cross-Origin-Opener-Policy header is missing — COOP isolates your browsing context, preventing cross-origin side-channel attacks. Set to 'same-origin'. - **[WARNING]** Cross-Origin-Embedder-Policy header is missing — COEP prevents loading cross-origin resources without explicit permission. Required for SharedArrayBuffer and high-resolution timers. - **[PASS]** X-Powered-By header is not present - **[WARNING]** Server header reveals version information — The Server header discloses the software version, aiding attackers in targeting known vulnerabilities. Remove the version number. ### Content Security Policy (F — 0/100) *No enforcing CSP policy found* - **[CRITICAL]** No Content-Security-Policy header found — CSP is the most effective defense against XSS attacks. Add a Content-Security-Policy header to restrict resource loading. ### TLS & Certificates (A+ — 100/100) *TLS 1.3, 7 checks passed* - **[PASS]** TLS 1.3 is used - **[PASS]** Strong cipher suite is used - **[INFO]** HTTP/2 is not negotiated — HTTP/2 provides multiplexing and header compression for better performance. - **[PASS]** Certificate is valid (expires in 146 days) - **[PASS]** Certificate chain has 3 certificates - **[PASS]** Certificate uses modern signature algorithm - **[PASS]** Certificate covers 7 domain(s) - **[PASS]** Certificate is issued by a trusted CA ### Cookie Security (A+ — 100/100) *No cookies set — no cookie security risks* - **[PASS]** No cookies set — no cookie security risks --- ## Advanced Security ### Subresource Integrity (F — 20/100) *0 of 14 external resources have SRI* - **[WARNING]** External script from ads.adthrive.com lacks integrity attribute — Without SRI, if this CDN is compromised, attackers could inject malicious code. - **[WARNING]** External script from ads.adthrive.com lacks integrity attribute — Without SRI, if this CDN is compromised, attackers could inject malicious code. - **[WARNING]** External script from ads.adthrive.com lacks integrity attribute — Without SRI, if this CDN is compromised, attackers could inject malicious code. - **[WARNING]** External script from securepubads.g.doubleclick.net lacks integrity attribute — Without SRI, if this CDN is compromised, attackers could inject malicious code. - **[WARNING]** External script from c.aps.amazon-adsystem.com lacks integrity attribute — Without SRI, if this CDN is compromised, attackers could inject malicious code. - **[WARNING]** External script from www.googletagmanager.com lacks integrity attribute — Without SRI, if this CDN is compromised, attackers could inject malicious code. - **[WARNING]** External script from ads.adthrive.com lacks integrity attribute — Without SRI, if this CDN is compromised, attackers could inject malicious code. - **[WARNING]** External script from www.googletagmanager.com lacks integrity attribute — Without SRI, if this CDN is compromised, attackers could inject malicious code. - **[WARNING]** External script from www.googletagmanager.com lacks integrity attribute — Without SRI, if this CDN is compromised, attackers could inject malicious code. - **[WARNING]** External script from analyze-82dfgsi2.m-w.com lacks integrity attribute — Without SRI, if this CDN is compromised, attackers could inject malicious code. - **[WARNING]** External script from b.delivery.consentmanager.net lacks integrity attribute — Without SRI, if this CDN is compromised, attackers could inject malicious code. - **[WARNING]** External script from cdn.consentmanager.net lacks integrity attribute — Without SRI, if this CDN is compromised, attackers could inject malicious code. - **[WARNING]** External script from securepubads.g.doubleclick.net lacks integrity attribute — Without SRI, if this CDN is compromised, attackers could inject malicious code. - **[WARNING]** External script from cdn.consentmanager.net lacks integrity attribute — Without SRI, if this CDN is compromised, attackers could inject malicious code. ### JS Library Vulnerabilities (A+ — 100/100) *No known vulnerabilities* - **[PASS]** No known JavaScript library vulnerabilities detected ### Information Leakage (A+ — 100/100) *No exposures* - **[PASS]** security.txt is present — good practice - **[PASS]** No sensitive files exposed ### Email Security (A+ — 100/100) *DMARC: reject* - **[PASS]** DMARC policy is reject — strongest protection ### Permissions-Policy (D — 40/100) *No header set* - **[WARNING]** No Permissions-Policy header — Consider adding a Permissions-Policy header to restrict browser feature access from embedded content. ### CORS Configuration (B — 80/100) *No CORS headers* - **[PASS]** No CORS headers present — secure default --- ## Performance ### Page Weight Budget (F — 16/100) *3.4 MB transferred, 122 requests* - **[WARNING]** Page weighs 9.8 MB (3.4 MB transferred) - **[WARNING]** JavaScript is 2.0 MB — consider code splitting or lazy loading — Large JavaScript bundles delay interactivity. Split code by route or defer non-critical scripts. - **[WARNING]** 122 HTTP requests — consider bundling or reducing — Each request adds latency. Bundle small files, use sprites, or eliminate unnecessary requests. - **[INFO]** Estimated 0.71 g CO2 per page load ### Third-Party Impact (D — 50/100) *72% third-party, 0 ms blocking* - **[WARNING]** Third-party code accounts for 72% of page weight (2.4 MiB of 3.4 MiB) - **[PASS]** Third-party blocking time is low (0 ms) ### Text Compression (A+ — 100/100) *All text resources are compressed* - **[PASS]** All text resources are compressed ### Image Optimization (C — 60/100) *39 images, 0 KB saveable* - **[WARNING]** https://merriam-webster.com/assets/mw/images/omni/... is missing width/height — may cause layout shift — Set explicit width and height to prevent CLS. - **[WARNING]** https://merriam-webster.com/assets/mw/images/omni/... is missing width/height — may cause layout shift — Set explicit width and height to prevent CLS. - **[WARNING]** https://merriam-webster.com/assets/mw/images/omni/... is missing width/height — may cause layout shift — Set explicit width and height to prevent CLS. - **[WARNING]** https://merriam-webster.com/assets/mw/images/artic... is missing width/height — may cause layout shift — Set explicit width and height to prevent CLS. - **[WARNING]** https://merriam-webster.com/assets/mw/images/artic... is missing width/height — may cause layout shift — Set explicit width and height to prevent CLS. - **[WARNING]** https://merriam-webster.com/assets/mw/images/omni/... is missing width/height — may cause layout shift — Set explicit width and height to prevent CLS. - **[WARNING]** https://merriam-webster.com/assets/mw/static/time-... is missing width/height — may cause layout shift — Set explicit width and height to prevent CLS. - **[WARNING]** https://merriam-webster.com/assets/mw/images/omni/... is missing width/height — may cause layout shift — Set explicit width and height to prevent CLS. - **[WARNING]** data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEA... is missing width/height — may cause layout shift — Set explicit width and height to prevent CLS. - **[WARNING]** https://merriam-webster.com/assets/mw/images/omni/... is missing width/height — may cause layout shift — Set explicit width and height to prevent CLS. ### JS Execution Cost (F — 20/100) *12073ms total JS execution* - **[WARNING]** Unattributable: 1591ms CPU time - **[WARNING]** https://www.merriam-webster.com/: 1438ms CPU time - **[WARNING]** https://cdn.consentmanager.net/delivery/customdata...: 1358ms CPU time - **[WARNING]** https://cdn.confiant-integrations.net/gptprebidnat...: 989ms CPU time - **[WARNING]** https://securepubads.g.doubleclick.net/pagead/mana...: 760ms CPU time - **[WARNING]** Third-party scripts: 12010ms (99% of total) ### Font Loading (A+ — 100/100) *10 fonts (107 KB)* - **[INFO]** 10 font(s) use font-display: swap (FOUT risk but functional) ### JS Bundles (F — 20/100) *46 scripts, 856 KB unused* - **[WARNING]** https://ads.adthrive.com/builds/core/b3b9c29/es201...: 158 KB unused (43%) — Consider code splitting or tree shaking to reduce unused code. - **[WARNING]** https://securepubads.g.doubleclick.net/pagead/mana...: 130 KB unused (69%) — Consider code splitting or tree shaking to reduce unused code. - **[WARNING]** https://ads.adthrive.com/builds/core/b3b9c29/gdpr/...: 125 KB unused (79%) — Consider code splitting or tree shaking to reduce unused code. - **[WARNING]** https://cdn.confiant-integrations.net/gptprebidnat...: 93 KB unused (56%) — Consider code splitting or tree shaking to reduce unused code. - **[WARNING]** https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtag/js?id=G-M7RZ...: 67 KB unused (40%) — Consider code splitting or tree shaking to reduce unused code. - **[INFO]** Total unused JavaScript: 856 KB ### Resource Caching (A+ — 100/100) *All resources properly cached* - **[PASS]** No caching issues found ### Critical Rendering Path (A+ — 100/100) *No render-blocking resources* - **[PASS]** No render-blocking resources detected ### Resource Hints (A+ — 100/100) *11 hints, 0 missing preconnects* - **[PASS]** Page uses 11 resource hint(s) ### Page Weight Inventory (F — 25/100) *122 resources · 3.4 MB · 856 KB savings available* - **[WARNING]** Page weight 2.4 MB over 1MB target - **[INFO]** ~856 KB of savings available - **[WARNING]** 107 third-party resources (72% of weight) - **[INFO]** 2 resources over 200KB ### Render-Blocking Resources (A+ — 100/100) *No render-blocking resources detected* - **[PASS]** No render-blocking resources detected in ### Third-Party Resources (A+ — 100/100) *No third-party resources detected* --- ## Content Quality ### Links (A — 93/100) *200 links checked, 198 healthy, 1 broken* - **[WARNING]** 198 of 200 links are healthy - **[CRITICAL]** Broken link: https://merriam-webster.com/logout — Found in . Returns HTTP 404. - **[INFO]** Long redirect chain: https://merriam-webster.com/word-games (3 hops) ### Mixed Content (A+ — 100/100) *No mixed content detected — all resources use HTTPS.* - **[PASS]** No mixed content detected — all resources use HTTPS ### Open Graph (B — 85/100) *Open Graph tags are partially configured — some improvements recommended.* - **[CRITICAL]** og:image is not reachable — The og:image URL could not be fetched. Social platforms won't be able to display it. - **[INFO]** Missing og:site_name — The og:site_name tag displays the website name in social previews. ### Structured Data (A — 90/100) *3 JSON-LD block(s) found — structured data is well configured.* - **[WARNING]** Missing required property "name" for Organization — The "name" property is required for the Organization schema type. - **[INFO]** Missing recommended property "url" for Organization — Adding "url" can improve how search engines display your content. - **[INFO]** Missing recommended property "logo" for Organization — Adding "logo" can improve how search engines display your content. - **[INFO]** Missing recommended property "sameAs" for Organization — Adding "sameAs" can improve how search engines display your content. - **[INFO]** Missing recommended property "description" for WebSite — Adding "description" can improve how search engines display your content. - **[INFO]** Missing recommended property "potentialAction" for WebSite — Adding "potentialAction" can improve how search engines display your content. - **[PASS]** 3 JSON-LD blocks found --- ## Infrastructure ### DNS Records (A+ — 100/100) *4 A records, 28 ms lookup* - **[PASS]** Resolves to 4 IPv4 address(es) - **[PASS]** Has 8 IPv6 (AAAA) record(s) - **[PASS]** 4 nameserver(s) configured - **[PASS]** 1 mail exchanger(s) configured - **[INFO]** CAA records not checked — CAA record lookup requires a specialized DNS resolver. This check will be available in a future update. - **[PASS]** SPF record present in TXT - **[PASS]** DNS resolution time: 28 ms ### Redirect Chain (A — 90/100) *1 redirect(s), 108 ms total* - **[PASS]** Single redirect - **[INFO]** WWW normalization redirect ### IPv6 Readiness (A+ — 100/100) *IPv6 reachable (1 ms)* - **[PASS]** IPv6 is configured and reachable at 2600:9000:2090:7800:c:3d32:e340:93a1, 2600:9000:2090:f200:c:3d32:e340:93a1, 2600:9000:2090:8c00:c:3d32:e340:93a1, 2600:9000:2090:da00:c:3d32:e340:93a1, 2600:9000:2090:3c00:c:3d32:e340:93a1, 2600:9000:2090:3600:c:3d32:e340:93a1, 2600:9000:2090:f400:c:3d32:e340:93a1, 2600:9000:2090:ac00:c:3d32:e340:93a1 ### Crawlability (A+ — 100/100) *robots.txt present, sitemap with 108 URLs* - **[PASS]** robots.txt is present - **[PASS]** sitemap.xml is present - **[PASS]** sitemap.xml is valid XML - **[PASS]** sitemap.xml contains 108 entries - **[PASS]** Sitemap index with 108 child sitemaps - **[PASS]** robots.txt references sitemap ### URL Variants (B — 75/100) *www/non-www, trailing slash, HTTP→HTTPS* - **[CRITICAL]** Both www and non-www versions serve content - **[PASS]** HTTP correctly 301-redirects to HTTPS ### Domain Intelligence (A+ — 100/100) *merriam-webster.com — via CSC Corporate Domains, Inc., 27 years, 6 months old* - **[PASS]** Domain registered until Feb 8, 2027 (9 months remaining) - **[INFO]** DNSSEC is not enabled — DNSSEC protects against DNS spoofing attacks. While not required, enabling DNSSEC adds an additional layer of security. Contact your DNS provider to enable it. - **[PASS]** Registrar: CSC Corporate Domains, Inc. - **[WARNING]** Registrar lock is NOT enabled — The domain can be transferred without an unlock step. Enable registrar lock (clientTransferProhibited) in your registrar's control panel to protect against unauthorized or accidental transfers. --- ## Compliance ### WCAG Compliance (A+ — 100/100) *No testable criteria* ### Cookie Consent & Privacy (A+ — 95/100) *privacy policy found* - **[PASS]** Privacy policy link found - **[INFO]** No terms of service link detected - **[INFO]** No cookie consent banner detected - **[INFO]** This is an automated check, not legal advice — BeaverCheck detects technical indicators of consent management. This does not constitute a legal compliance assessment. Consult a privacy professional for GDPR/CCPA compliance. ### Language & i18n (A — 90/100) *Lang attribute present* - **[PASS]** attribute is present - **[PASS]** value is valid - **[INFO]** No Content-Language HTTP header - **[INFO]** Language signals are inconsistent — The attribute and Content-Language header should agree. ### Readability & Typography (A+ — 100/100) *Font sizes and tap targets checked* ### Viewport Configuration (A+ — 100/100) *Viewport properly configured* - **[PASS]** Viewport meta tag is present - **[PASS]** width=device-width is set - **[PASS]** User zooming is allowed ### Third-Party Trackers (B — 80/100) *11 trackers detected* - **[INFO]** 11 third-party trackers detected — Found 4 analytics, 6 advertising, 0 marketing, 1 tag manager trackers. - **[WARNING]** 6 advertising/retargeting trackers detected — Advertising trackers collect user data for ad targeting. Under GDPR, these typically require explicit consent. ### Cookie & Tracker Inventory (A+ — 100/100) *0 cookies · 11 trackers · 0 pre-consent* - **[INFO]** 11 third-party tracker(s) detected on page --- ## Legal ### Legal Page Ecosystem (C — 60/100) *2 of 7 expected legal pages detected* - **[PASS]** Privacy Policy detected — Found at /privacy-policy, linked from footer. - **[PASS]** Terms of Service detected — Found at /legal, linked from footer. - **[INFO]** Cookie Policy not detected — No link matching common Cookie Policy URL patterns or link text was found. Most websites are expected to have a Cookie Policy, especially those collecting user data. - **[INFO]** Accessibility Statement not detected — No link matching common Accessibility Statement URL patterns or link text was found. Most websites are expected to have a Accessibility Statement, especially those collecting user data. - **[INFO]** DMCA / Copyright Notice not detected — No link matching common DMCA / Copyright Notice URL patterns or link text was found. Most websites are expected to have a DMCA / Copyright Notice, especially those collecting user data. - **[INFO]** Refund / Returns Policy not detected — No link matching common Refund / Returns Policy URL patterns or link text was found. Most websites are expected to have a Refund / Returns Policy, especially those collecting user data. - **[INFO]** Acceptable Use Policy not detected — No link matching common Acceptable Use Policy URL patterns or link text was found. Most websites are expected to have a Acceptable Use Policy, especially those collecting user data. ### Copyright Notice (A+ — 100/100) *© 2026 Merriam-Webster* - **[PASS]** Copyright notice is up to date — Copyright notice is up to date: © 2026 Merriam-Webster - **[PASS]** Copyright holder: Merriam-Webster ### Regulatory Indicators *1 regulatory indicator(s) detected* - **[INFO]** This is a technical scan, not a legal assessment — BeaverCheck detects technical indicators that may suggest regulatory relevance. This is not a compliance audit and should not be relied upon for legal decisions. Consult qualified legal counsel for compliance assessments. - **[INFO]** GDPR indicators detected (moderate confidence) — Indicators suggesting GDPR may be relevant: Privacy policy page found. EU General Data Protection Regulation — governs collection and processing of personal data of EU residents. ### Third-Party Data Sharing *2 third-party service(s) detected* - **[INFO]** Data inventory for transparency purposes — This inventory identifies third-party services that receive data from your site visitors. Under regulations like GDPR (Article 30), maintaining records of data processing activities is commonly considered a best practice. This automated scan provides a starting point — it may not capture all data flows. - **[INFO]** 2 third-party services across 2 categories — 2 third-party services detected across 2 categories: Analytics (1), Tag Management (1). Each of these services receives some user data from your site visitors. - **[INFO]** Google Analytics (Analytics) — Detected via script URL. Typically collects: Page views, User behavior, Demographics, Device info, IP address. Privacy policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy. Data Processing Agreement available. - **[INFO]** Google Tag Manager (Tag Management) — Detected via script URL. Typically collects: Orchestrates other tracking scripts, Page views. Privacy policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy. Data Processing Agreement available. ### Compliance Badges (B — 70/100) *1 compliance badge(s) detected* - **[PASS]** TRUSTe / TrustArc badge detected — Found via body text: 'truste'. Note: the presence of a badge does not verify the certification is current or valid. --- ## Availability ### CDN & Delivery (A — 85/100) *AWS CloudFront (Miss from cloudfront)* - **[PASS]** Site is served via AWS CloudFront CDN (edge: AMS58-P1) - **[INFO]** CDN cache status: Miss from cloudfront ### HTTP Caching (A — 90/100) *max-age=601 (10 minutes)* - **[PASS]** Cache-Control header is set - **[PASS]** Effective TTL: 10 minutes (max-age=601) - **[INFO]** No ETag or Last-Modified header — Conditional requests (304 Not Modified) are not possible without validators. ### Transport Security (A — 85/100) *HTTP/3, HSTS, and TLS version analysis* - **[PASS]** HTTP/3 (QUIC) supported — The server advertises HTTP/3 via Alt-Svc for faster connections on mobile networks. - **[WARNING]** Missing Strict-Transport-Security header — HSTS tells browsers to only use HTTPS, preventing SSL stripping attacks. - **[PASS]** TLS 1.3 in use (fastest handshake, 1-RTT) --- ## Accessibility ### Landmark Structure (D — 50/100) *6 landmarks* - **[CRITICAL]** No
landmark found — Screen reader users cannot quickly navigate to the primary content. Wrap your main content in
. - **[PASS]** 2