Networking is as fundamental to security as camouflage to a chameleon. So let’s just say I was super eager to chow down on everything this course had to offer. Seems fitting while writing this review during the holiday season to compare the course to fruitcake, a mixed texture of fruits and nuts. Some of the topics blended well with the overall course description and some left us a little perplexed by their inclusion.
Alright, before plunging too deep into the good stuff, a brief overview seems in order. The course has been divided up into projects, quizzes, and a final exam with some extra-credit opportunities. Thank the tech deities that the bulk of the grading is in the projects and that the quizzes are open book because they and the final exam can be a bit dicey. To see some of the specific topics covered, anyone can easily locate the course overview at https://omscs.gatech.edu/cs-6262-network-security.
Being a hands on (or tail as the case may be) kind of learner, projects based learning always proves immensely more fulfilling then sitting through long lectures or trying to keep acronyms straight in an academic journal.
Don’t get me wrong! Those other methods are definitely valuable too, but there is no replacement for learning you discovered “for yourself.”
Projects in this course? Absolute game-changers! Picture this: hacking into a shellshock-vulnerable server in project 1, throwing JavaScript into a web app’s buggy business in project 2, and diving deep into malware mysteries in project 3. Pause for a sec – dissecting malware in a network security course? Yeah, it was a bit of a stretch (looking at you, project namba tatu), but who’s complaining? Not this lizard! Now, projects 4 and 5, right on the money with network monitoring and machine learning for intrusion detection systems. Network security or not, these projects are the real MVPs!
Getting my masters with Georgia Tech continues to be one crazy ride after the next, and we are only 3 down and 7 to go. So until next time, blend in later you data translator. 🦎✌️
What?! Too 🧀🧀sy?