PenTesting Syllabus
CSCI 3370
Spring 2023
Description |
: |
Students will learn techniques and tools for testing the
security of networks and applications. Students will also learn how to
mitigate such attacks and to provide a secure computing environment. This
course includes a significant amount of hands-on work in a virtual lab
environment and, among other topics, targets the popular PenTest+
certification. |
Prerequisites |
: |
CSCI 2370 |
Textbook |
: |
None. Will will utilize Ascend learning environment for
lab work and online learning. |
Format |
: |
Hybrid format with class meeting only on Tuesdays |
Students who satisfactorily complete this course will (hopefully) be able
to:
- Marshal various tools to test the resilience of a network by taking on a white-hat hacker role.
- Know how to defend against a variety of network attacks.
- Be able to recommend strategies to improve the security of an organization.
- Be able to test the security of a web-based application and recommend changes in accordance with findings.
- Recognize the ethical responsibility inherent in knowledge gained through this course.
- Document and report findings.
Your grade in the course will be earned / calculated as follows:
Weekly Quizzes |
|
20% |
Homework |
|
25% |
Ascend Labs |
|
20% |
Ascend Lectures |
|
15% |
Final Exam |
|
20% |
A |
 |
90 |
– |
100 |
B |
 |
80 |
– |
89 |
C |
 |
70 |
– |
79 |
D |
 |
60 |
– |
69 |
F |
 |
0 |
– |
59 |
Most weeks there will be a quiz at the beginning of class. Quizzes will be taken
in Canvas and you'll need to have a laptop computer with you in class to be able
to complete it. Quizzes must be taken at the prescribed time and may NOT be taken
remotely (or else will receive a grade of zero). If you know in advance you will
be absent for a quiz, notify the instructor prior to the start of class to
discuss options for taking the quiz early. Quizzes will cover material from the
Ascend learning materials and labs as well as course lectures, notes, and
homework assignments. Each student is given 10 free quiz points to help cover
situations involving a missed quiz.
Homework assignments and Ascend work is considered late if it is not submitted
at or before the beginning of the class period on the day it is due. Late
work will receive a 30% point penalty and must be completed within a week or
the original due date. Work that misses the one week deadline will receive a
grade of 0 (unless there are extenuating circumstances).
Homework assignments will be given regularly and are intended to reflect your
individual effort. As such it is expected you will complete assignments
independently. Assignments that clearly reflect collaboration or copying of
some source will be subject to penalty according to HSU's Academic Integrity
Policy.
The final exam will take place at the scheduled time during finals week. The exam
is not collaborative in nature so receiving any form of assistance from anyone
other than the instructor is a violation of the academic integrity policy. You
may only use study aids during the exam if they are expressly allowed by the
instructor for that particular exam.
An individual with a disability is defined by the Americans with Disabilities
Act (ADA) as a “person who has a physical or mental impairment that
substantially limits one or more major life activities.” Any student with a
documented disability may choose to seek accommodations. Eligible students
seeking accommodation should contact the
Director of Undergraduate Advising and Disabilities
as soon as possible in the academic term (preferably during the first two weeks
of a long semester) for which they are seeking accommodations. The
director will prepare letters to appropriate faculty members concerning
specific, reasonable academic adjustments for the student. The student is
responsible for delivering accommodation letters and conferring with faculty
members. Please refer to the most recent version of the Undergraduate
Catalog for the complete policy. (Carol Krueger, Director of
Undergraduate Advising and Disabilities, Office: Sandefer Memorial, 1st floor
Academic Advising Center, Phone: 670-5867, Email: disabilityservices@hsutx.edu)
Peer-to-peer academic support (tutoring) is available for all undergraduate HSU
students. The Academic Center for Enrichment (ACE) is open for virtual tutoring
sessions via Zoom. To access instructions or make an appointment, open the ACE
course on your Canvas dashboard. For additional information regarding academic
support, contact the Advising Center at 325-670-1480 or tutoring@hsutx.edu.
In addition, all full or part-time students are eligible to receive free,
confidential, and voluntary counseling services at HSU. Services include
consultation, evaluation, counseling, and crisis support services for students
facing issues impacting their overall well-being. To obtain any of these
services, students may call The Office of Counseling Services at (325) 671-2272,
email counseling@hsutx.edu, or begin the intake process by completing our online
forms at:https://www.hsutx.edu/intake.
Violations of academic integrity have been described to some degree in other
sections of this syllabus.
Cases of suspected academic dishonesty will be handled in accordance with
university policies outlined in Undergraduate Catalog and in the Student
Handbook. The current catalog prescribes that “no student who has
violated the Academic Integrity Policy will be allowed to graduate from
Hardin-Simmons University with honors.” Penalties will be assigned at the
discretion of the instructor and typically range from failure on the assignment
to failure of the course. A general rule-of-thumb is that a first offense (if
not too major) will result in a zero on the assignment and a second offense will
result in an F for the course. The current catalog states that an F earned in
this way cannot be replaced by retaking the course.
The instructor may occasionally use email to communicate with the class as a
whole or with individuals. When contacting you for this course the instructor
will use your HSU email account. You are expected to check your HSU email
account at least once per day and you will be held responsible for any content
distributed in this way.
Regarding class attendance, the Undergraduate Catalog states:
Accordingly, absence from more than 25 percent of class meetings and/or
laboratory sessions scheduled for a course (including absences because of
athletic participation) is regarded as excessive, and a grade of F may be
assigned as deemed appropriate by the professor.
All course materials are provided via Canvas, including a week-by-week overview of the course.