Cyber attacks are considered to be one of the top five risks to businesses globally, and the level of threats from cyber criminals is increasing daily. Businesses experience literally thousands of cyber attacks each day. This course is designed to impart basic cyber security skills in six intense weeks of study (approximately 15 hours per week) to help students decide if a career in cyber security is right for them. Development of the 100% project-based, learn-by-doing program was funded in part by the Department of Defense, and the curriculum was designed in conjunction with DoD and industry experts.
Students work through two online real-life tasks (spending 1-2 weeks per task) in a private cloud environment with help, advice and feedback from knowledgeable mentors as well as extensive online learning resources. The tasks are embedded in the realistic, but fictional, context of work as an entry-level employee of a government cyber operations agency. You'll learn how to:
- Think like an attacker
- Exploit common website vulnerabilities
- Analyze network traffic at the packet level
- Recognize malware being transferred to a host
- Recognize the identifying features of an exploit kit attack
Students must successfully complete this course to be permitted to enroll in the next course in this program, Cyber Security Defense.