KU Element Check List

KU Element Check List: 2014 Mandatory Knowledge Units – 2 Year Programs
CAE Mandatory KU – 4 Year Page 1 September 2013
* = Can include a summary justification for that section.

1.0 Core 2Y Knowledge Units

1.1 Basic Data Analysis The intent of this Knowledge Unit is to provide students with basic abilities to manipulate data into meaningful information.
1.1.1 Topic(s):
____ Summary Statistics
____ Graphing / Charts
____ Spreadsheet Functions
____ Problem solving
1.1.2 Outcome(s): Students will be able to:
____ Apply standard statistical inference procedures to draw conclusions from data.

1.2 Basic Scripting or Introductory Programming The intent of this Knowledge Unit is to provide students with the ability to create simple scripts/programs to automate and perform simple operations. This knowledge should include basic security practices in developing scripts/programs (e.g., bounds checking, input validation).
1.2.1 Topic(s):
____ *Basic Security
____ Bounds checking, input validation
____ Program Commands
____ Program Control Structures
____ Variable Declaration
____ Debugging
____ Scripting Language (e.g. PERL, Python, BASH, VB Scripting, Powershell)
____ *Basic Boolean logic/operations
____ AND / OR / XOR / NOT
1.2.2 Outcome(s): Students will be able to:
____ Demonstrate their proficiency in the use of scripting languages to write simple scripts (e.g., to automate system administration tasks).
____ Write simple and compound conditions within a programming language or similar environment (e.g., scripts, macros, SQL).
____ Write simple linear and looping scripts.

1.3 Cyber Defense The intent of this Knowledge Unit is to provide students with a basic awareness of the options available to mitigate threats within a system.
1.3.1 Topic(s):
____ Network mapping (enumeration and identification of network components)
____ *Network security techniques and components
____ Access controls, flow control, cryptography, firewalls, intrusion detection systems, etc.
____ Applications of Cryptography
____ Malicious activity detection / forms of attack
____ Appropriate Countermeasures
____ Trust relationships
____ *Defense in Depth
____ Layering of security mechanisms to achieve desired security
____ *Patching
____ OS and Application Updates
____ Vulnerability Scanning
____ Vulnerability Windows (0-day to patch availability)
1.3.2 Outcome(s): Students will be able to:
____ Describe potential system attacks and the actors that might perform them
____ Describe cyber defense tools, methods and components
____ Apply cyber defense methods to prepare a system to repel attacks
____ Describe appropriate measures to be taken should a system compromise occur.

1.4 Cyber Threats The intent of this Knowledge Unit is to provide students with basic information about the threats that may be present in the cyber realm.
1.4.1 Topic(s):
____ Adversaries and targets
____ Motivations and Techniques
____ The Adversary Model (resources, capabilities, intent, motivation, risk aversion, access)
____ *Types of Attacks
____ Password guessing / cracking
____ Backdoors / trojans / viruses / wireless attacks
____ Sniffing / spoofing / session hijacking
____ Denial of service / distributed DOS / BOTs
____ MAC spoofing / web app attacks / 0-day exploits
____ Vulnerabilities that enable attacks
____ Attack Timing (within x minutes of being attached to the net)
____ Social Engineering
____ Events that indicate an attack is/has happened
____ Legal Issues
____ Attack surfaces / vectors
____ Attack trees
____ Insider problem
____ Covert Channels
____ Threat Information Sources (e.g., CERT)
1.4.2 Outcome(s): Students will be able to:
____ Identify the bad actors in cyberspace and compare and contrast their resources, capabilities/techniques, motivations, aversion to risk
____ Describe different types of attacks and their characteristics

1.5 Fundamental Security Design Principles The intent of this Knowledge Unit is to provide students with basic security design fundamentals that help create systems that are worthy of being trusted.
1.5.1 Topic(s):
____ Separation (of domains)
____ Isolation
____ Encapsulation
____ Least Privilege
____ Simplicity (of design)
____ Minimization (of implementation)
____ Fail Safe Defaults / Fail Secure
____ Modularity
____ Layering
____ Least Astonishment
____ Open Design
____ Usability
1.5.2 Outcome(s): Students will be able to:
____ List the first principles of security
____ Describe why each principle is important to security and how it enables the development of security mechanisms that can implement desired security policies
____ Analyze common security failures and identify specific design principles that have been violated
____ Identify the needed design principle when given a specific scenario
____ Describe why good human machine interfaces are important to system use
____ Understand the interaction between security and system usability and the importance for minimizing the affects of security mechanisms

1.6 Information Assurance Fundamentals The intent of this Knowledge Unit is to provide students with basic concepts of information assurance fundamentals.
1.6.1 Topic(s):
____ Threats and Adversaries
____ Vulnerabilities and Risks
____ Basic Risk Assessment
____ Security Life-Cycle
____ Intrusion Detection and Prevention Systems
____ Cryptography
____ Data Security (in transmission, at rest, in processing)
____ Security Models
____ Access Control Models (MAC, DAC, RBAC)
____ Confidentiality, Integrity, Availability, Access, Authentication, Authorization, Non-Repudiation, Privacy
____ Security Mechanisms (e.g., Identification/Authentication, Audit)
1.6.2 Outcome(s) Students will be able to:
____ List the fundamental concepts of the Information Assurance / Cyber Defense discipline
____ Describe how the fundamental concepts of cyber defense can be used to provide system security
____ Examine the architecture of a typical, complex system and identify significant vulnerabilities, risks, and points at which specific security technologies/methods should be employed

1.7 Introduction to Cryptography The intent of this Knowledge Unit is to provide students with a basic ability to understand where and how cryptography is used.
1.7.1 Topic(s):
____ Symmetric Cryptography (DES, Twofish)
____ *Public Key Cryptography
____ Public Key Infrastructure
____ Certificates
____ *Hash Functions (MD4, MD5, SHA-1, SHA-2, SHA-3)
____ For integrity
____ For protecting authentication data
____ Collision resistance
____ Digital Signatures (Authentication)
____ Key Management (creation, exchange/distribution)
____ Cryptographic Modes (and their strengths and weaknesses)
____ Types of Attacks (brute force, chosen plaintext, known plaintext, differential and linear cryptanalysis, etc.)
____ Common Cryptographic Protocols
____ DES -> AES (evolution from DES to AES)
____ Security Functions (data protection, data integrity, authentication)
1.7.2 Outcome(s): Students will be able to:
____ Identify the elements of a cryptographic system
____ Describe the differences between symmetric and asymmetric algorithms
____ Describe which cryptographic protocols, tools and techniques are appropriate for a given situation
____ Describe how crypto can be used, strengths and weaknesses, modes, and the issues that must be addressed in an implementation (e.g., key management), etc

1.8 Information Technology System Components The intent of this Knowledge Unit is to provide students with an understanding of the basic components in an information technology system and their roles in system operation.
1.8.1 Topic(s):
____ Workstations
____ Servers
____ Network Storage Devices
____ Routers / Switches / Gateways
____ Guards / CDSes / VPNs / Firewalls
____ IDSes, IPSes
____ Mobile Devices
____ Peripheral Devices / Security Peripherals
1.8.2 Outcome(s): Students will be able to:
____ Describe the hardware components of modern computing environments and their individual functions

1.9 Networking Concepts The intent of this Knowledge Unit is to provide students with basic understanding of network components and how they interact.
1.9.1 Topic(s):
____ Overview of Networking (OSI Model)
____ Network Media
____ Network architectures (LANs, WANs)
____ Network Devices (Routers, Switches, VPNs, Firewalls)
____ Network Services
____ Network Protocols (TCP/IP, HTTP, DNS, SMTP, UDP)
____ Network Topologies
____ Overview of Network Security Issues
1.9.2 Outcome(s): Students will be able to:
____ Describe the fundamental concepts, technologies, components and issues related to communications and data networks.
____ Describe a basic network architecture given a specific need and set of hosts/clients.
____ Track and identify the packets involved in a simple TCP connection (or a trace of such a connection).
____ Use a network monitoring tool (e.g., WireShark).
____ Use a network mpapping tool (e.g., Nmap).

1.10 Policy, Legal, Ethics and Compliance The intent of this Knowledge Unit is to provide students with and understanding of information assurance in context and the rules and guidelines that control them.
1.10.1 Topic(s):
____ HIPAA / FERPA
____ Computer Security Act
____ Sarbanes – Oxley
____ Gramm – Leach – Bliley
____ Privacy (COPPA)
____ Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS)
____ State, US and international standards / jurisdictions
____ Laws and Authorities
____ US Patriot Act
____ BYOD issues
____ Americans with Disabilities Act, Section 508
1.10.2 Outcome(s): Students will be able to:
____ List the applicable laws and policies related to cyber defense and describe the major components of each pertaining to the storage and transmission of data
____ Describe their responsibilities related to the handling of information about vulnerabilities
____ Describe how the type of legal dispute (civil, criminal, private) affects the evidence used to resolve it

1.11 Systems Administration The intent of this Knowledge Unit is to provide students with skill to perform basic operations involved in system administration.
1.11.1 Topic(s):
____ OS Installation
____ User accounts management
____ Password policies
____ Authentications Methods
____ Command Line Interfaces
____ Configuration Management
____ Updates and patches
____ Access Controls
____ Logging and Auditing (for performance and security)
____ Managing System Services
____ Virtualization
____ Backup and Restoring Data
____ File System Security
____ Network Configuration (port security)
____ Host (Workstation/Server) Intrusion Detection
____ Security Policy Development
1.11.2 Outcome(s): Students will be able to:
____ Apply the knowledge gained to successfully install and securely configure, operate and maintain a commodity OS, to include: setting up user accounts, configuring appropriate authentication policies, configuring audit capabilities, performing back-ups, installing patches and updates, reviewing security logs, and restoring the system from a backup

KU Element Check List: 2014 Mandatory Knowledge Units – 2 Year Programs
CAE Mandatory KU – 4 Year Page 6 September 2013
* = Can include a summary justification for that section.