Basic Ideas in Computing Security

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Basic Ideas in Computing Security

Instructor: Ahmed M. Hamza

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4 modules

Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.

Beginner level

Recommended experience

7 hours to complete

Flexible schedule

Learn at your own pace

4 modules

Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.

Beginner level

Recommended experience

7 hours to complete

Flexible schedule

Learn at your own pace

What you'll learn

You will learn how to use prominent sources of cyber threat intelligence in the open source domain to identify current threats and prioritize action.
You will learn what the basic working terminology is in computing security, and how to analyze vulnerability disclosures and their impact.
You will study authorization mechanisms as applied to Unix, and use them to set and change permission access levels on a modern operating system.

Skills you'll gain

Tools you'll learn

Command-Line Interface

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There are 4 modules in this course

This course teaches fundamental concepts in computing security, focusing on cross-cutting concepts spanning: vulnerability metrics and terminology, utilizing open source intelligence, authentication mechanisms/factors, and authorization & access control protocols. You can expect to gain fundamental conceptual knowledge as well as practical skills needed by everyone, not least those who are entering the field of Cybersecurity -- this will put you on the path to completing the Intro to Computing Security Specialization.

Learners from all backgrounds will benefit, especially those who have little experience with Unix access control and the command-line shell. The course offers a unique insight into many diffferent areas of research and practice in the world of cybersecurity. This course can be taken for academic credit as part of CU Boulder’s Masters of Science in Computer Science (MS-CS) degrees offered on the Coursera platform. This fully accredited graduate degree offer targeted courses, short 8-week sessions, and pay-as-you-go tuition. Admission is based on performance in three preliminary courses, not academic history. CU degrees on Coursera are ideal for recent graduates or working professionals. Learn more: MS in Computer Science: https://coursera.org/degrees/ms-computer-science-boulder

An introduction to the world of cybersecurity terminology, objectives, and the contrast between vulnerabilities/bugs and weakness enumeration in the security community. Learn how vulnerabilities are scored using objective, quantitative measures of impact.

What's included

4 videos4 readings1 assignment

4 videos Total 28 minutes

Introductory Overview 2 minutes
The CIA Triad 4 minutes
Vulnerability Scoring Metrics 15 minutes
0-day Vulnerabilities 6 minutes

4 readings Total 65 minutes

Earn Academic Credit for your Work! 10 minutes
Course Support 10 minutes
Assessment Expectations 5 minutes
Vulnerabilities and the CVE System 40 minutes

1 assignment Total 10 minutes

Module 1: Cybersecurity Landscape Quiz 10 minutes

Discover what organizations keep track of known, actively exploited vulnerabilities and malware campaigns, and how to use that information to make decisions affecting critical systems. We discuss how prioritization is not always a simple quantitative procedure. Also find out how to use public tools to quickly check any un-trusted files, URLs, and file signatures against hundreds of anti-malware engines and community notes.

What's included

2 videos1 reading2 assignments

What are the main factors of authentication based on? What is multi-factor authentication, and how does it relate to authentication protocols? How can authentication factors be vulnerable even when based on advanced tech?

What's included

3 videos2 readings2 assignments

Maintaining access control is a critical feature of security and a driving force of all cryptographic systems. Here we explore two basic forms of authorization models (Mandatory and Discretionary), and dive into the world of Unix filesystem access control as an example of the latter.

What's included

3 videos1 assignment1 ungraded lab

Instructor

Ahmed M. Hamza

University of Colorado Boulder

4 Courses 3,084 learners

Offered by

University of Colorado Boulder

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