Comp527: Computer Systems Security
	Dan Wallach, Department of Computer Science, Rice University Fall 2003

Are you looking for the current Comp527 Web page?

This class will focus on computer security in real systems. We will cover theory and practice for the design of secure systems (formal modelling, hardware and compiler-enforced safety, software engineering processes, tamper-resistant and tamper-reactive hardware, firewalls, cryptography, and more). We will also discuss how and why each of these techniques fail.

There will be reading assigned before every class, usually chapters from the book or papers available online somewhere. You're expected to read them. Also, class discussions and announcements will appear on the course newsgroup rice.owlnews.comp527. You are expected to read this newsgroup regularly. Off-campus students should contact Owlnet about getting an account.

Important links: Course syllabus, grading policies, voting security project, final project

Please enroll online for the class as well.

Required textbook

Security Engineering: A Guide to Building Dependable Distributed Systems Ross J. Anderson John Wiley & Sons Paperback - 612 pages (2001)

If you have trouble getting the book locally, you can always try buying it at Amazon.com, Bookpool, or any other reseller you might like. As an optional resource, you may also find it helpful to browse The Handbook of Applied Cryptography, available in its entirety online, or you can purchase it at the usual booksellers.

The Handbook of Applied Cryptography Alfred J. Menezes, Paul C. van Oorschot and Scott A. Vanstone CRC Press 816 pages (1996)

Pre-requisites

((Comp311 or Comp412) and (Comp421 or Comp429)) or (consent of the instructor).

DH1075 - new room!, MW(F) 2-3pm (but will go late...)

• Avi Rubin's big list of crypto and security classes

Any student with a documented disability needing academic adjustments or accommodations is requested to speak with me during the first two weeks of class. All discussions will remain confidential. Students with disabilities should also contact Disabled Student Services in the Ley Student Center.