Overview

In this program, you will complete a real module from the online Master of Computer Science program that will help you understand the field of Cybersecurity through the lens of computer systems and algorithms.

You will learn to protect and defend information and information systems by ensuring their availability, integrity, authentication, confidentiality, and non-repudiation through protection, detection, and reaction practices.

You will select and complete three courses from the following list:

- Information Assurance and Security
- Applied Cryptography
- Software Security
- Advanced Computer Network Security
- Distributed & Multiprocessor OS
- Advanced Computer System Security

By committing to online study for 6-9 months, you can earn the Cybersecurity MasterTrack Certificate which serves as a pathway to the online Master of Computer Science degree at Arizona State University.

Syllabus

Course 1: Information Assurance and Security
- This course will provide basic and comprehensive understanding of the problems of information assurance (IA) and security, possible solutions to these problems, especially the security of information on computers and networks. This course will focus on the IA technology as well as IA policy, management, legal and ethical issues.

Course 2: Applied Cryptography
- Cryptography provides the underlying security methods for the web and many other computer applications. This course covers the design usage of cryptographic protocols for online and offline computing applications. Assuring the quality, validity and privacy of information is one of the key applications of Cryptography. Applications of cryptography ranges from signatures and certificates to trustless multiparty computations.

Course 3: Software Security
- This course will provide students with an understanding of the theories, tools, and techniques to identify, exploit, and mitigate software security vulnerabilities in the network, binary, and web levels. Students will study, in-depth, vulnerability classes to understand how to protect software and how to secure software. We will also cover the history of software security, and ethical considerations. This course will focus on a hands-on approach: In addition to understanding vulnerability classes, students will be required to identify and exploit vulnerabilities.

Course 4: Advanced Computer and Network Security
- Focusing on the areas of applied cryptography, system security, and the principles and practices of network security, this course explores the necessary tools, techniques, and concepts of network security for modern computer networks. The course’s coverage of advanced network security includes both cutting-edge technologies and research topics, primarily at the MAC layer and above. The course not only provides students with exposure to burgeoning areas of network security but also hands-on experience using the tools essential for computer network and cybersecurity today and in the future.

Course 5: Distributed and Multiprocessor Operating Systems
- This course will teach both the fundamental concepts and principles of distributed systems and the practical skills for developing distributed systems. Specific topics covered include distributed systems architecture, communication, coordination, and consistency and replication.

Course 6: Accelerated Applied Security
- This course will teach you the countermeasures to attacks to computer systems from miscreants (or hackers) and basic topics of cryptography and network security.