CS 361f, Summer 2016: Syllabus

CS f361: Summer 2017
Introduction to Computer Security
Instructor: Dr. Bill Young; Unique number:87540
Class time: MTWTF 11:30am - 1pm Location: GDC 1.304
Office: GDC 7.810; Office Hours: See message below
Office Phone: 471-9782; Email: byoung at cs.utexas.edu
TA: Zhao Song; Email: zhaos at utexas.edu
TA Office Hours: TBA
This website: www.cs.utexas.edu/users/byoung/cs361/syllabus361.html

Important Class Announcements:
Breaking news important to the class will be posted here. Consult this spot often.
Dr. Young's office is in the south wing. You have to take the south elevator, because the two towers don't connect on the 7th floor.
Feel free to email me (Send me an email message), but please put "CS361" in the header.

Course Description:
CS 361 is an introduction to topics in computer security, one of the "hottest" and most relevant areas of computing today. This is a course in the foundational aspects of security; not a course giving you practice in hacking. The student will develop an intuition about what computer security means, both in the abstract and in the context of real systems; be able to recognize potential threats to confidentiality, integrity and availability; be aware of some of the underlying formalisms and technologies that attempt to address these challenges; and be conversant with current security-related issues in the field.
Topics to be covered will include:

Scope of the security problem;
Various views of computer security;
Security policies;
Formalizing security properties;
Elementary information theory;
Elementary cryptography;
Cryptographic protocols;
Authentication;
Risk assessment;
Malicious logic;
System evaluation and certification.
Very important: This course has a blended format (as of Fall, 2011). "Blended" means that a large portion of the course content is delivered on-line. Videotaped mini-lectures will be made available on-line via UT's Quest system: Quest system. You will view these prior to coming to class and answer a series of questions on-line. The class will meet two or three a week, but most meetings won't last for the entire 1.5 hours. We'll meet to discuss the material and assignments, and possibly have a short quiz to ensure that you've viewed the lectures and done the required preparation. A paper that describes the blended course is available here: Blended class.
The complete schedule of meeting dates for the semester is here: Class Dates.
Note: This is not a self-paced course. A chart of the material for each week is here: Log of lectures. You must view the mini-lectures and do the on-line portions as they are assigned, and you must attend class. You will have 5-6 programming assignments over the course of the semester. If you don't have the self-discipline to keep up, you shouldn't take this course. It goes very fast in the summer and it's easy to fall behind. If you do so, you probably won't catch up.
Using Piazza: We will be using Piazza for class communication. The Piazza system is highly catered to getting you help quickly and efficiently from classmates, the TAs, and myself. Rather than emailing questions to the teaching staff, I encourage you to post your questions on Piazza. If you turn off the announcements from Piazza you might miss an important announcement. Don't do it! If you have any problems or feedback for the developers, email team@piazza.com. You will be automatically enrolled in Piazza; but you can also enroll yourself.
Using Canvas: Grades will be posted on Canvas. It is your responsibility to check grades on Canvas and verify their correctness. If you think there is an issue or omission, call it to our attention immediately. However, I don't use Canvas to compute your grade. If you consult the running average on Canvas, you'll just be confused, so I advise you not to do it.
InfoSec Certification: Notice that CS students at UT have the option of completing a number of security-related courses and receiving a government-sanctioned certification in security. See the following link for information: Security certification. Our security offerings are in flux, so the specific requirements may vary somewhat. If you have questions about that, feel free to contact me.

Prerequisites:
You are expected to have taken and passed the following courses (or equivalent) with a grade of at least C-: Computer Science 311, 311H, 313H, or 313K; Computer Science 314, 314H, 315, or 315H; Computer Science 310, 310H, 429, or 429H; and Mathematics 408C, 408K, or 408N. If you don't have the prerequisites, be sure to clear it with the CS department or risk being dropped from the class.

Text:
There is no textbook. If you would like a book for reference purposes, ask me and I can suggest one. All of the lectures, slides, and supplementary materials are on-line. Note that there is a required fee for the use of the Quest system. This is very cheap compared to the cost of a textbook, so please don't whine about it.

Fee for Quest System:
This course makes use of the web-based Quest content delivery system maintained by the UT College of Natural Sciences. Go to Quest system to log in to the Quest system for this class. This service requires a charge per student for its use, which goes toward the maintenance and operation of the resource. At some point during the semester, when you log into Quest you will be required to pay via credit card on a secure payment site. You may have the option to wait some time to pay while still continuing to use Quest for your assignments. But, at some point, you will be kicked off the system and not able to continue in our course; so be sure to pay up. If you are taking more than one course using Quest, there is a maximum Quest fee per semester you will have to pay. For payment questions, email quest.fees@cns.utexas.edu.
BTW: Quest doesn't record that you've viewed the videos. Don't worry about that. No one will be checking.

Class Notes:
All of the class slides will be available via links below. They will be made them available as we cover new material and you are welcome to print them out or view them on-line. Slides are available in 4-up PostScript (PS) or in PDF format (full size and in 4-ups). The PostScript files can be viewed with Ghostview or printed on any postscript-compatible printer. The PDF files can be viewed with Acroread.
A listing of the lectures for each week is here: Log of lectures. Slides are grouped into lectures, which are grouped into modules. Each week, you will cover one or more modules. Note that you must view the video associated with each lecture. It is not adequate to just read the slides. Here is a list of class dates: Class Dates.

Overview Talk:
The Stakes of Cyber Insecurity

Week 1: Module 1:
Lecture 1: Introduction PS-4up PDF-4up PDF
Lecture 2: Why Security is Hard PS-4up PDF-4up PDF
Lecture 3: Security as Risk Management PS-4up PDF-4up PDF
Lecture 4: Aspects of Security PS-4up PDF-4up PDF

Week 1: Module 2:
Lecture 5: Policies and Metapolicies PS-4up PDF-4up PDF
Lecture 6: A Policy Example: MLS PS-4up PDF-4up PDF
Lecture 7: MLS Example: Part II PS-4up PDF-4up PDF
Lecture 8: MLS Example: Part III PS-4up PDF-4up PDF
Lecture 9: MLS Example: Part IV PS-4up PDF-4up PDF
Lecture 10: Tranquility and BLP PS-4up PDF-4up PDF

Week 1: Module 3:
Lecture 11: Access Control Policies PS-4up PDF-4up PDF
Lecture 12: Lattice Based Security PS-4up PDF-4up PDF
Lecture 13: Covert Channels I PS-4up PDF-4up PDF
Lecture 14: Covert Channels II PS-4up PDF-4up PDF
Lecture 15: Covert Channels III PS-4up PDF-4up PDF
Lecture 16: Detecting Covert Channels PS-4up PDF-4up PDF

Assignments:
There will be 5-6 programming assigments over the course of the semester. They should be done in the Java programming language. If you don't know Java, discuss it with me and I may allow an alternative arrangement. Each student may work on programming assignments in collaboration with one other student. Make sure that all submissions clearly identify which students contributed to the project.
You have another standing assignment: For each video you view, there are several short essay questions to be answered. Collectively, these questions are counted as equal to one programming assignments. They are linked below. It is expected that you will do these on your own; do not collaborate on these or access other students' work on GitHub or elsewhere. Doing so is cheating and will be dealt with harshly. The questions are typically due at 5pm on the Thursday of the week they are assigned. You are strongly encouraged to attempt them before you come to class on Thursday so you can ask any questions you may have, and be prepared for a possible quiz. Weekly questions typically will not be accepted late.
Programs will be graded on a 10 point scale, and will be accepted up to two days late with a deduction of one point per day late (but only up to 2 days late). The number of days late is purely a function of the timestamp recorded when you submit the assignment. That means that you have until midnight on the day due to turn it in. If you turn it in one minute after midnight, it's a day late. So leave yourself plenty of time, and please don't whine that "but I was only 5 minutes late." "Midnight" for our purposes always means the end of the day, not the beginning of the day.
The TAs may turn off the turnin program after the due date, and accept late assignments by email. Please coordinate with the TAs regarding late submissions, or if you desire to re-submit an assignment following the due date.
Here are some general instructions for programming assignments: General Instructions. You should follow these for all programming assignments along with the instructions associated with each individual program.
After an assignment has been graded, it is your responsibility to check Canvas to see that your assignment grades have been posted correctly. It's not OK to complain at the end of the semester that some grades weren't posted or were posted incorrectly.
Instructions for turnin: Programs and question assignments will all be submitted on Canvas.
Links to all assignments will appear below. Check this page often and be sure to check that any particular assignment or due date has not been changed. Each week expect one set of questions on the lectures. Programming assignments will come about every other week.
Questions Week 1: Week1: due Thursday, 6/9/16 by 5pm

Quizzes:
Short in-class quizzes may be given at any time. These will cover material previously covered or material in the mini-lectures you were expected to view. Material for a week is fair game for a Thursday quiz. The goal of quizzes is to test your understanding of the material and to give you an idea of the types of questions that will appear on tests. There will be no makeups for quizzes you miss so please don't ask, but any single quiz is only a small proportion of your final grade.

Tests:
There will be two major tests during the semester: a midterm and final. Tests are closed-book, closed-notes tests, except that you may bring a single handwritten 3 x 5 inch index card of notes (both sides) for the midterm, and two such cards for the final. Your best study strategy is to review the class notes and ensure that you understand thoroughly the topics we have covered. Sample tests and vocabulary lists will be posted.

No laptops:
Students should not have laptops or other electronic devices open during class discussions. Copies of all slides are provided. Please just listen, ask questions, participate and absorb the material.

Grading policies:
Class attendance is mandatory for our two weekly meetings, and will be checked. Excessive unexcused absences will result in a reduced grade. If you don't plan to come to class regularly, please don't register for this class. Signing in for another student not present will be considered cheating by both students.
Grades are averaged using the weighting below:

Component Percent

Attendance, Quizzes and Participation 10%
Assignments 40%
Midterm Exam 25%
Final Exam 25%

Course grades are assigned on the scale: A = 90-100; B = 80-90; etc. (I don't grade on the +/- grading system.) However, I reserve the right to be more generous than these ranges indicate. That is, I may enlarge any of these ranges; I will not shrink any range.

Scholastic Dishonesty:
Academic dishonesty will not be tolerated. See http://www.cs.utexas.edu/academics/conduct for an excellent summary of expectations of a student in a CS class.
All work must be the student's own effort (with the exception of group effort on programs). Work by students in previous semesters is not your own effort. Don't even think about turning in such work as your own, or even using it as a basis for your work. We have very sophisticated tools to find such cheating and we use them routinely. Several students didn't heed this warning in past semesters and paid a heavy price. It's far better to get a 0 on an assignment than to cheat and risk an F in the class and a blot on your permanent record.
Also, don't post your work on any publicly available site, such as GitHub. It's understandable that you're proud of your work, but this just invites copying for students this semester and in subsequent semesters. If someone copies your work, even without your knowledge, you will both be liable to punishment. Here's what Mike Scott said when I mentioned this issue to him:
I have submitted cases to SJS for past students who have posted code from CS314 and CS312 to public repos and current students used it to cheat. Not much SJS can do grade wise, but it is recorded and they often have to write an essay about the matter.
I plan to follow Mike's lead here. There are other services such as BitBucket that have private repositories; you can grant access to instructors and to potential employers.
No deviation from the standards of scholastic honesty or professional integrity will be tolerated. Scholastic dishonesty is a serious violation of UT policy; and will likely result in an automatic F in the course and may result in further penalties imposed by the department or by the university. Don't do it. If you are caught, you will regret it. And if you're not caught, you're still a cheater.

Students with Disabilities:
Students with disabilities may request appropriate academic accommodations from the Division of Diversity and Community Engagement, Services for Students with Disabilities, 471-6259, http://www.utexas.edu/diversity/ddce/ssd.

Some Interesting Links:
As I find articles or websites that seem of interest to this class, I'll post them below. The most recent are at the top.
Most Critical Skills Gap
Covert Channel Example
New Randomness Method
Typosquatting Package Managers
Skill in Demand: Incident Response Manager
Tips on Resume Writing
Pretty good material on AES
Top Paying Certifications 2016
Public Key Encryption
Top Paying CS Certifications
Which Engineers Make the Most
Navy Teaches Navigation as Backup
Hottest Tech Jobs 2016
Certificaions Worth Having
Hottest Career Track: Cybersecurity
Value of a College Degree?
Could Google Rig the Election
Lessons from Larry Page
Demand for Cybersecurity pros booming
Freak Flaw Serious
Live Map of Cyber attacks
Preserving Digital Data
Encrytion Make Reverse Engineering Difficult
Selling Vulnerabilities
Vulnerabilities Persist
Cyberwarriors Needed
Cyberattacks and Jobs
Great time to start a cybersecurity career
CS Enrollments Rocket
Chinese Hack
Untrusted Certificate
Attacks in 2014
Demand for Cybersecurity pros booming
Freak Flaw Serious
Live Map of Cyber attacks
Preserving Digital Data
Encrytion Make Reverse Engineering Difficult
Selling Vulnerabilities
Vulnerabilities Persist
Cyberwarriors Needed
Cyberattacks and Jobs
Short of Cyberwarriors
Hackers Wanted
Health Hack Inevitable
Top IT Job Salaries
CS Enrollments Soaring
Cyberwarriors Needed
Security: A Higher Calling?
Covert Channels in Acoustical Networks
Homomorphic Encryption
Government doesn't follow best practice.
Adobe Encrypts Passwords
Women needed in Cybersecurity
Morris Worm at 25
Women in CS
Rijndael animation
Scholars for Service program
$1M Cyber challenge
Cybersecurity jobs
NSA breaking encryptions
Blocking Malware
Security jobs hot
Attracting security pros
Hacking Airplanes
Human side of cybercrime
Wow!
IT Jobs Up, Degrees Down
Is RSA Obsolete?
Preventing Cyber Pearl Harbor
Cyberjobs Hot
Covert Channel between VMs
Anti-Virus Failures
Info on AES mixColumns
Peter Neumann
Experts needed
Govt wants hackers
Women, minorities in Security
This site contains a nice animation of AES-128: AES-128 Cute cartoon about Feistel ciphers
Encryption for the masses
Fully Secure OS?
iPad as Secure Device
protecting passwords
DoD Money for Hackerspaces
Cities with Most CS Jobs
Have Hackers Won?
Malware Pre-installed
Smother Cyber Attacks
Sale of Zero-day exploits
Algorithms rule the world
Hotel locks hacked
Cyberwar
Cyber attacks
Flaw in AES
Zodiac Message
One Time Pad
Cyber Camp
Hot Skills for 2011
Cyber attack threat

Attendance, Quizzes and Participation	10%
Component	Percent
Assignments	40%
Midterm Exam	25%
Final Exam	25%

CS f361: Summer 2017 Introduction to Computer Security

Important Class Announcements:

Course Description:

Prerequisites:

Text:

Fee for Quest System:

Class Notes:

Overview Talk:

Week 1: Module 1:

Week 1: Module 2:

Week 1: Module 3:

Assignments:

Quizzes:

Tests:

No laptops:

Grading policies:

Scholastic Dishonesty:

Students with Disabilities:

Some Interesting Links:

CS f361: Summer 2017
Introduction to Computer Security