This course will teach students the core concepts needed to analyze unknown source code. Students will study a variety of low-level programming languages and how high-level programming language structures relate to low-level programming languages. Students will learn study tools and techniques used for both static and dynamic analysis of unknown binaries, providing the foundation for further study in malware analysis.

This course investigates the many facets of network security and forensics. Students will examine the areas of intrusion detection, evidence collection, network auditing, network security policy design and implementation as well as preparation for and defense against attacks. The issues and facilities available to both the intruder and data network administrator will be examined and evaluated with appropriate laboratory exercises to illustrate their effect.

The three key elements of risk management will be introduced and explored. These are risk analysis, risk assessment, and vulnerability assessment. Both quantitative and qualitative methodologies will be discussed as well as how security metrics can be modeled, monitored, and controlled. Several case studies will be used to demonstrate the risk management principles featured throughout the course. Students will work in teams to conduct risk assessments on the selected case study scenarios. They will develop mitigation plans and present the results of their analysis both in written reports and oral presentations.

Students will examine the areas of intrusion detection, evidence collection, network auditing, network security policy design and implementation as well as preparation for and defense against attacks. The issues and facilities available to both the intruder and data network administrator will be examined and evaluated with appropriate laboratory exercises to illustrate their effect. The students will be provided with an understanding of the principles and concepts of wired and wireless data network security. Students will perform a series of laboratory or homework experiments in order to explore various mechanisms for securing data networks including physical layer mechanisms, filters, applications and encryption. Students will engage in attack/defend scenarios to test their deployments against other teams. Students should be knowledgeable in networking technologies.

This course provides an introduction to wired network infrastructures, topologies, technologies, and the protocols required for effective end-to-end communication. Basic security concepts for TCP/IP based technologies are introduced. Networking layers 1, 2, and 3 are examined in-depth using the International Standards Organization’s Open Systems Interconnection and TCP/IP models as reference. Course topics focus on the TCP/IP protocol suite, the Ethernet LAN protocol, switching technology, and routed and routing protocols common in TCP/IP networks. The lab assignments mirror the lecture content , providing an experiential learning component for each topic covered.

Why are we still so bad at protecting computer systems? Is it because we don’t have good enough technology? Or because we lack sufficient economic incentives to implement that technology? Or because we implement technologies but then fail to use them correctly? Or because the laws governing computer security are so outdated? Or because our legal frameworks are ill-equipped to deal with an international threat landscape? All these reasons—and others— have been offered to explain why we seem to see more and more large-scale cybersecurity incidents and show no signs of getting better at preventing them. This course will examine the non-technical dimensions of this problem—the laws and other policy measures that govern computer security threats and incidents. We will focus primarily on U.S. policy but will also discuss relevant policies in the E.U. and China, as well as international tensions and norms. The central themes of the course will be the ways in which technical challenges in security can be influenced by the social, political, economic, and legal landscapes, and what it means to protect against cybersecurity threats not just by writing better code but also by writing better policies and laws.