This page is organized by the weeks of the quarter in which lectures were given. The weeks are in inverse order, on the assumption you will most often be looking for the most recent week.
This class will be taught by Peter Reiher. The textbook is Computer Security: Art and Science, by Matt Bishop. Assigned readings are from this book, unless otherwise indicated. Dr. Bishop has also published a second textbook that contains selected sections of this book, with a similar title. I can't guarantee that all material assigned will actually be in this other book, and it will definitely be at different pages if it's there at all.
I will be lecturing on these subjects during the class.
The TA for the course is Peter Peterson -- pahp@cs.ucla.edu. The labs for this course will consist of 5 hands-on, practical and exploratory projects covering security-related topics, plus a small introduction to the lab software. Office hour and discussion section information will be determined following the first recitation section and posted here.
Instructions for accessing the homework will be given out via email following the first class section and will be discussed during the first recitation section. The lab manual and all necessary materials for the labs are located here (login information for these resources will be provided on Thursday via email).
As indicated in class, Dr. Reiher is running an NSF-sponsored research study on the effectiveness of using practical exercises as a teaching tool for computer security classes. He has asked students taking the class this quarter if they want to participate in this study. Participation is strictly voluntary and has no effect on one's grade. Details on the study and a copy of the consent form volunteers should sign and return are available here.
Here is a sample final exam for the course. This exam was given in a previous year, so the material covered might be slightly different, but almost all of the questions should be answerable from material I lectured on or assigned as readings.
Textbook: Chapter 21 (pages 571 -608)
No readings are assigned for Tuesday.
No readings assigned for Tuesday.
Textbook: Chapter 22 (pages 613-641)
Textbook: Chapter 25 (pages 723-767)
Web link (not required reading):
SANS' frequently asked question page on intrusion detection contains links to a lot of useful information, without trying to sell you on a particular product.
Veterans Day, no class.
No new readings in the book are assigned for today.
The home page for the Honeynet project. You are not required to read or investigate this page, but if you find the concept of honeypots and honeynets particularly interesting, this is a good place to learn more.
No new readings assigned for today.
No lecture today because of the midterm.
The midterm will be held in class on Tuesday, November 2. Here is a sample midterm that is similar in style and covers most of the same content as the midterm to be given on Tuesday.
Textbook: Chapter 26 (pages 773-799)
NOTE: The midterm will be on Tuesday, November 2, as shown in the syllabus. The slides in lecture 1 indicated that it would be on Thursday, October 28. That date is wrong. The test will be on November 2.
Textbook: Chapter 24. (Pages 689-719)
No textbook assignments for this class.
Textbook: Chapter 12 (pages 309-335)
Web links:
A discussion on choosing secure passwords.
A short essay on the limits of using biometrics by Bruce Schneier. This essay is embedded in a longer newsletter. You need only read the section titled "Biometrics in Airports".
No assigned readings for today.
Textbook: Chapter 10, sections 10.1, 10.3, 10.4, and 10.5 (pages 245-246, 252-266)
Textbook: Chapter 9, sections 9.2.2.2-9.7 (pages 227-241)
Textbook: Introduction to Section IV and Chapter 9, sections 9.1-9.2.2.2 (pages 215-227).
Textbook: Chapter 2 (pages 31-44) and Chapter 15 (pages 381-396).
Textbook: Chapter 4, Sections 4.1-4.6 (pages 95-114)
Chapter 5, Sections 5.1-5.2.2 (pages 123-132)
Chapter 6, Sections 6.1-6.2 (pages 151-155)
Chapter 7, Section 7.1 (pages 169-177)
Textbook: Chapter 1 (pages 1-25)
Web links:
Improving the Security of Networked Systems, Julia Allen, Christopher
Alberts, Sandi Behrens, Barbara Laswell, and William Wilson.
Why Computers Are Insecure, Bruce Schneier. (The link leads to an
entire web page on various security subjects. Read it all, if you want,
but the assignment is only this essay, which is around a page and a half.)
Social Engineering
Fundamentals, Part I: Hacker Tactics Sarah Granger.
The Stuxnet
worm was discussed in class. This article talks about how it was analyzed
and determined to be intended for taking control of certain kinds of
facilities.
Week 2 (September 29 - October 5)
Slides
Tuesday, October 5
Thursday, September 30
Assigned readings:
Tuesday, October 5
Thursday, September 30
Week 1 (September 23 - September 28)
Tuesday, September 28
Thursday, September 23
Assigned readings:
Tuesday, September 28
Thursday, September 23