Module-Based Computer Security Courses and Laboratory for Small and Medium Sized Universities

This project is funded by National Science Foundation under the CCLI A&I program with award number 0311592. The duration of the project is from June 2003 to May 2005.

Investigators

University of Houston-Clear Lake (UHCL)

• Dr. Andrew Yang (PI): yang@cl.uh.edu
• Dr. Kwok-Bun Yue: yue@cl.uh.edu
• Dr. Morris Liaw: liaw@cl.uh.edu
• Dr. George Collins: collins@cl.uh.edu

University of Houston-Downtown (UHD)

• Dr. Ping Chen: Chenp@uhd.edu

Project Summary

The long-term goal (and a major intellectual merit) of the project is to establish a curriculum model for flexible adoption of computer security courseware by nationwide computing programs. The curriculum model will especially benefit computing programs in smaller colleges/universities, where resources tend to be limited. The model will consist of an array of security modules, a majority of which will be developed by this proposal.

The second major intellectual merit of the proposal is to develop a Distributed Computer Security Laboratory (DCSL), which will consist of two remotely connected labs. The labs will be insulated from their respective campus backbone and be equipped with state-of-the-art instrumentations, including wireless and mobile networks. The DCSL will provide a shared platform where distributed security can be rigorously studied.

The proposed model is an adaptation from the Information Systems and Internet Security (ISIS) Lab at Polytechnic University of New York. The ISIS Lab supports two courses: Computer Security and Network Security. Proposed extensions to the ISIS model include a module-based approach and new subject areas, such as Wireless Security and Database Security. ISIS has agreed to help in the adaptation by sharing experiences/courseware and exchanging visits with the UHCL/UHD team. The broader impacts of the proposal include: (i) Creation of the module-based model, enabling universities to select modules and supporting courseware to create customized curriculum; and (ii) the distributed lab model, enabling universities to build a distributed security lab without interfering with their campus network.