Introduction to Cyber Attacks

Partnering with NYU, this Coursera course is designed to introduce newcomers to the basics of common cyber security issues. It covers threats like Trojans, worms and network attacks to give a strong overview of how to understand the essence of cyber security.

( 138 Reviews )

Created by: Dr. Edward G. Amoroso

Produced in 2018

Quality Score

Content Quality

Video Quality

Qualified Instructor

Course Pace

Course Depth & Coverage

Overall Score : 92 / 100

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Course Description

c Awards Best Free Course

This course provides learners with a baseline understanding of common cyber security threats, vulnerabilities, and risks. An overview of how basic cyber attacks are constructed and applied to real systems is also included. Examples include simple Unix kernel hacks, Internet worms, and Trojan horses in software utilities. Network attacks such as distributed denial of service (DDOS) and botnet- attacks are also described and illustrated using real examples from the past couple of decades. Familiar analytic models are outlined such as the confidentiality/integrity/availability (CIA) security threat framework, and examples are used to illustrate how these different types of threats can degrade real assets. The course also includes an introduction to basic cyber security risk analysis, with an overview of how threat-asset matrices can be used to prioritize risk decisions. Threats, vulnerabilities, and attacks are examined and mapped in the context of system security engineering methodologies.

Beginner Level

Time: 4.5h

Pros

Cons

- Course is designed to be the very first step towards a cyber security career, and it delivers on both accessibility and quality knowledge.
- The thoroughness of the course ensures that even students with background knowledge of cyber security will learn something new.
- Allows students to be introduced to complex and challenging ideas without being overwhelming.
- Students raring to start fending off cyber attacks will be frustrated with the space and scope of the course. It is only an introduction.
- Some supplemental links are dated.
- Supplemental material is not as accessible as the main course. The reading gets dense.

Instructor Details

Dr. Edward G. Amoroso

4.6 Rating
138 Reviews

Dr. Edward G. Amoroso is Chief Executive Officer of TAG Cyber LLC, a global cyber security advisory, training, consulting, and media services company supporting hundreds of major organizations across the world. Ed recently retired from AT&T after thirty-one years of service, beginning in Unix security R&D at Bell Labs and culminating as Senior Vice President and Chief Security Officer of AT&T from 2004 to 2016. He was elected an AT&T Fellow in 2010. Ed is Research Professor in the Computer Science Department at the NYU Tandon School of Engineering, and a Senior Advisor at the Applied Physics Laboratory at Johns Hopkins University. He is author of six books on cyber security, and dozens of major research and technical papers in peer-reviewed journals and conference proceedings. Ed has also been Adjunct Professor of Computer Science at the Stevens Institute of Technology for the past twenty-nine years, where he has introduced over three thousand graduate students to the topic of information security. Ed holds the BS degree in Physics from Dickinson College, the MS/PhD degrees in Computer Science from the Stevens Institute of Technology, and is a graduate of the Columbia Business School. He holds ten patents in cyber security technology, and he served previously on the Board of Directors for M&T Bank and the NSA Advisory Board. Ed's work has been highlighted on CNN, the New York Times, and the Wall Street Journal. He has worked directly with four Presidential administrations on

Reviews

4.6

138 total reviews

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By Bianca K on 26-Feb-19

The material covered in this course is interesting. Let down by lack of quality control and amendments on problems with the content (Recommend you check the discussion board for comments about issues with quiz questions before you attempt to answer as you may find that the 'correct' answer is probably one of the ones you discount because there is a wording issue). Questions seem to test your reading skills more than knowledge of the subject (yes, i should read the question properly before selecting an answer but are you testing my literacy or understanding of the subject matter?)

By Dan H on 17-Sep-18

Overall, I really enjoyed this course. Ed is a fantastic teacher. My only complaint (and why I did not give it 5 stars) is with the final exam. The instructions states that the answers are subjective, however I had to take the test over and over until I got the correct choices they were looking for. As an example, who knows if software sells person working from home has confiidentiality risk of high, medium, or low? I think it is pretty subjective, and I would have had to get more information about their work environment to really make that call. It was an excersize in frustration.

By Bryan C on 10-Mar-18

Course moves too slow; Feels like everything is being drawn out to try and collect more money rather than actually teach; Instructor seems more interested in name dropping and talking about his past jobs/connections than teaching the subject; Tests don't match materials or come before materials are presented; Some lectures are slightly inaccurate or misleading in the way they're presented; Generally poor teaching methods that don't focus on student comprehension. Reading materials and third-party videos are good.

By Uladzimir B on 26-Oct-18

Good introduction. Many points that would be useful for a non-IT professional from managerial perspective. Some of the links to Videos and Readings are dead, but students on the associated forum pages have found working ones, so not a huge drawback. Would be good to have any indication if teaching assistants are tracking what's going on or if the students are on their own.

By Pablo R A on 25-Jan-19

Love the energy of Dr. Edward G. Amoroso in each video, the fact you sense he is enjoying giving the class and that he uses examples, stories and plain language to communicate highly complex topics in an easy to understand way, I greatly appreciated and highly recommend! Coming from another sector completely different and that I never knew anything of cyber attacks and from Spain being English a second language I feel it was worth my time and learned a great deal! Thank you!

By Rishabh J on 3-May-19

It was fun and challenging. There were few areas were in the quiz where I need to google a few terms which I have not heard before. But other than that it was really fun. Learned a lot.

By MOHAMED M E on 12-May-19

By Lixiaoxu on 8-May-19

This course is my first lesson in the security world. It is very important to me. The teacher's teaching method is vivid and the examples are just right. It helps newcomers like me to understand. I will continue the following courses. Master more professional knowledge!

By Ross B on 11-Oct-18

Great course. Nice overview of frameworks and models to view security with perspective and then develops further on risk models. I felt the final quiz was a little too subjective.

By Enida C on 3-May-19

Great course.

By Leonard A on 10-Mar-19

I understand that getting the big picture of threat/asset matrix is important, and yet I think it should be mixed in with some more interesting areas of cybersecurity. Maybe mixing the second course with the first would make it more interesting? Anyways, I thought it was tedious, and also boring and very subjective coming to the end of it.

By Francisco H on 24-Nov-18