CS 6262: Network Security

Objectives and Overview

This course takes a holistic approach to topics in computer networking; we will cover many aspects of networking in greater depth. You will:

Textbooks

The required textbook for this course is Charlie Kaufman, Radia Perlman and Mike Speciner, Network Security: Private Communication in a Public World, 2nd Edition, Prentice Hall, 2002. ISBN 0-13-046019-2.

You will be expected to prepare with the assigned readings, which will be from the required textbook, plus additional supplemental readings from industry rags and research papers.

Although we will rely primarily on this textbook for basic readings, we will supplement this reading with various outside readings (articles, research papers, etc.). Some material covered comes from the following textbooks:

Some material will only be covered in lectures. You are responsible for this material as well.

Academic Honesty

Students are expected to abide by the Georgia Tech Honor Code. Honest and ethical behavior is expected at all times. All incidents of suspected dishonesty will be reported to and handled by the office of student affairs. You are to do all assignments yourself, unless explicitly told otherwise. You may discuss the assignments with your classmates, but you may not copy any solution (or part of a solution) from a classmate.

Prerequisites

This class is appropriate for undergraduate or graduate students with previous background in network security. CS 4235 is a suggested prerequisite. Some familiarity with both network programming and scripting languages (e.g., Perl, Ruby) may be helpful.

Grading

Grading will be based on problem sets, programming assignments, quizzes, and a semester-long project with a presentation and writeup. Participation will count for "fudge factors".

  • 30% Problem Sets
  • 35% Final Project
  • 30% 2 Quizzes
  • 5% Participation

Schedule

Readings will not be handed out in class. Please print the readings and read them before class.
Please note that this schedule is tentative and subject to change throughout the course of the term.

Lecture Date Topics Notes/Resources Preparation
1 Mon 01/05 Course Overview and Introduction
Thompson1984
2 Wed 01/07 Computer Security Overview
Chapter 1
Primitives
3 Mon 01/12 Introduction to Cryptography
Chapter 2
4 Wed 01/14 Secret Key Crypotgraphy
Chapters 3-4
Mon 01/19 School Holiday
5 Wed 01/21 Public Key Crpyotgraphy
Chapter 6
6 Mon 01/26 Public Key Cryptography Continued
Management
7 Wed 01/28 Key Distribution
Chapter 9.7
8 Mon 02/02 Self-Certification
Mazieres1999
9 Wed 02/04 Authentication
Chapters 9, 10
10 Mon 02/09 Information Flow and Access Control
Denning1976
11 Wed 02/11 Taint Analysis
Yin2007
System Security
12 Mon 02/16 Secure System Design
Saltzer1975
13 Wed 02/18 Buffer Overflows and Common Vulnerabilities
Cowan1998
14 Mon 02/23 Malware
15 Wed 02/25 Cryptography and System Security
Anderson1993
16 Mon 03/02 Secure Operating Systems
Zeldovich2006
Wed 03/04 Quiz 1
Network Security
17 Mon 03/09 IP-Layer Security
Chapters 17 and 18
Andersen2008
18 Wed 03/11 Routing Security
Kapela BGP Attack
19 Mon 03/16 Naming Security
Kaminsky DNS Hack
20 Wed 03/18 Worms and Botnets: Attacks and Defenses
Mon 03/23 Spring Break
Mon 03/30 Spring Break
21 Wed 04/01 Unwanted Traffic: Denial of Service and Spam
22 Mon 04/06 Firewalls and Filters
Paxson1998
Application Security
23 Wed 04/08 Anonymity and Privacy
Dingledine2004,
Mazieres1998
24 Wed 04/15 Web Security
Chapter 19
Provos2007
25 Mon 04/20 Byzantine Fault Tolerance
Wed 04/22 Quiz 2

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