University of Zimbabwe

Faculty of Computer Engineering, Informatics and Communications

Department of Computer Science
Lecturer: Miss V. J. Jowa
Email: vjowa@ceic.uz.ac.zw
Phone: 0782619906
Office: 112, 1st Floor Computer Science Building
HCS412, HCT 420, BSFS – Computer Security,
HETT402 – Computer Networks & Network Security.

Course objective
This course will cover the most important features of computer security, including topics such as
cryptography, network security, and software security. After completing this course, students will be
able to analyse, design and build secure systems of moderate complexity.

Prerequisite
 Data Communications and Networking course, HAI/HCC/HCS211/HCT207 or equivalent.
 Students are expected to have a university email account and an e-learning account.

Learning methods
 Lectures
 Class discussions
 E-learning
 Practical Work

Course materials
 Textbooks
 Course notes
 Internet reference material

Assessment
 Coursework 50%
 Semester exam 50%

Professional Certifications
 CompTIA Security+
 CCNA Security
Detailed Course Outline:
Units TOPICS

1 Introduction to Computer Security

 Foundations of Computer Security

 Security Attacks, services and mechanisms
o Attacks and attackers
o Risk and Threat Analysis

2 Identification and Authentication

 Usernames and Passwords

 Phishing, Spoofing and Social Engineering
 Password Guessing
 Protecting the Password File

3 Authentication and Authorization

 Access Controls
 Ownership
 Policy Instantiation
 Reference Monitors
 Bell –LaPadula Model

4 Cryptography

 Symmetric Encryption
 Asymmetric Encryption
 Quantum Cryptography
 Hashing Functions
 Steganography
 Digital Signatures

5 Public Key Infrastructure

 Basics of Public Key Infrastructure

 Certificate Authorities
 Trust and Certificate Verification
 In-house Certificate Authorities
 Digital Certificates

6 Communications Security

 IP Security
 IPSEC
  SSL/TLS

7 Network Security

 DNS
 VPN
 Firewalls
 Intrusion Detection

Wireless Network Security

 Bluetooth
 Mobile Phones

8 Ethics, Privacy and Legal Issues

 Cybercrime
 Ethics
 Cyber Security and Data Protection Bill

9 Web Security

 Authenticated Sessions
 Code Origin Policies
 Cross-Site Scripting and Request Forgery
 JavaScript Hijacking
 Web Services Security

Recommended Texts
1. Computer security, Gollmann, Dieter.
2. Computer Security Principles and Practice, 3rd Edition, William Stallings Lawrie
Brown
3. Cryptography and Network Security: Principles and Practices, W.Stallings, Prentice
Hall, 5th Edition
4. Principles of Computer Security: CompTIA Security+ and Beyond by Wm.A.Conklin
et al.,McGraw Hill, 3rd Edition
5. CompTIA Security+ Guide to Network Security Fundamentals, Mark Ciampa, 5th
Edition
6. parlzim.gov.zw
7. Journal papers