Post 004 - CYBR 515

Week 1 Assignments

Theme for the Week - Introduction

Learning Objectives:

Identify the main components of a security architecture.

Provide an overview of the security planning process.

Differentiate between passive and active security threats.

Readings:

Chapter 1 in your textbook.

Developing a Network Security Plan, Microsoft Technet

This week:

Welcome to the first week of our course. In this week's lesson, we begin our examination of security architecture and design by focusing on the background and terminology that we will use throughout the rest of this course. We overview recommended reading and Web sites that will be of use to you in building your knowledge base. Please feel free to ask about anything that seems puzzling. The book and associated and supplemental readings cover a lot of ground in a short amount of time, and you will probably have numerous questions and comments. We encourage you to use the weekly discussion forums to discuss those with your professor and peers. In some cases, you may note that the reading assignments cover material that was not published in the last year. That is because it is still recognized as a viable source for information on a particular subject. Our supplemental reading assignment for this week is a good example. "Developing a Network Security Plan" was written for Windows 2000 Server, and it has never been revised. That is because it covers the planning process in general, and the concepts discussed still apply to current operating systems.

Regarding the reading assignment in your textbook, you will note that it contains a section on recommended readings and Internet and Web resources. Please take the time to examine those, as the information they contain is of value to you.

Security certifications, evaluations, and accreditations are used to add discipline and rigor to the practice of network security. It is a good idea to familiarize yourself with these procedures and tools. Therefore, we'll relate the concepts in our lessons to the areas in well-known security certifications.

You are now ready to proceed with the assignments below. Please read the directions carefully and submit the assignments as directed.

Assignment 1_1 (On-line Quiz)

Take this ten question true/false and multiple choice chapter quiz over the reading assignment. Quizzes are a "participation grade," which means that you can retake them as many times as necessary. However, please be aware that low scores are a sign that you need to go back to the reading assignment, slow down, and read more carefully.

You need to take the quiz by the end of the week to earn credit.

Assignment 1_2 (Post to this week's discussion forum)

Post an introductory message in the Week 1 Forum. You can access this forum by clicking on the Discussion Board button on the left-hand side of your screen, then clicking on the Week 1 Forum link. To post your message, click on the Add New Thread button in the upper left-hand corner of the Week 1 Forum Discussion Board. Enter a subject and your message text, then click on the Submit button at the bottom right hand corner. Include information on any education or experience you might have that is related to security architecture. Please note that this posting is due at least two days before the end of the week in order to earn full credit. Earlier postings are always welcome so that your fellow students have an opportunity to read, ponder, and perhaps reply to your posting. Read all postings and respond to at least two.

General Posting Guidelines (for participation): Postings are counted as participation for the week. Make sure all postings for this week's assignments are posted to this week's discussion forum. You must post at least two substantive messages to get minimum credit for participation (a 'C' grade). Two messages on different days gets a 'B' for participation - more postings (including answering other questions) get more credit. To qualify for an 'A' grade, you must post at least three critical thinking messages on three different days. Postings on the last day of the lesson will not count for credit since other students will not have sufficient time to respond or participate in your discussion. Post early and often. Don't wait until the last minute!

Assignment 1_3 (Attach to this assignment)

Create a 1-2 page double spaced paper that discusses the principle components of a security plan. Use your supplemental reading assignments (hint: see the "Network Security Plan" article above) and other credible sources as the basis for your work. Use APA format to cite your sources. If you are not sure how to do that, please see the slide presentation, "Citing Your Sources," in the Course Documents area of this course. It isn't necessary to format your paper using APA format, just cite your sources using the APA documentation style. Also, your copy of Writing Intensive is an excellent reference for the APA documentation style. Save your paper to a file called CYBR515 Assignment 1_3 , and attach it to this assignment.

This assignment is worth 30 points.

>> View/Complete Assignment: Assignment 1_3 (Attach to this assignment)

Assignment 1_4 (Attach to this assignment)

Using Microsoft Word, create a table that has two columns, with a first column header of Active Security Threat, and a second of Passive Security Threat.

Then, using your assigned readings and other credible sources, fill in both columns. Provide five (5) examples of each with a brief explanation. Three of the examples of each cannot be from the course book.

Remember to cite your sources. Save your table to a file called CYBR515 Assignment 1_4 , and attach it to this assignment.

This assignment is worth 30 points.

>> View/Complete Assignment: Assignment 1_4 (Attach to this assignment)

Assignment 1-5 (Not Graded)

This course requires you to use Microsoft Visio Professional 2010 to complete some of your assignments. As a student taking courses with the College of Information Technology, you may download Visio at no cost to you through the Microsoft Academic Alliance (msdnaa). To do so, you must have an account on Microsoft's e-academy Web site. Please see the How to Enroll section at the following link if you do not already have an account:

Instructions for Microsoft Academic Alliance

If you already have an account, follow the directions in the worksheet that is attached to this assignment to download and install Visio from Microsoft.

While you are logged into e-academy, you might want to look around, as membership provides you with access to most of Microsoft's software catalog at no cost to you. Your membership lasts until you are no longer taking classes with the College of Information Technology, and you may keep the software forever. However, you will receive a single activation key with each product, so you will want to back up your activation information in case you need to reload. The best way to do that is to back up your entire machine, including the system state data. That way, you can restore from backup and the software will already be activated. Also there are two main stipulations that you need to know about the license agreement: You can't sell or give the software away and you can't use it to make money.