Course Grade Received: A
Cybersecurity Techniques and Operations
Provides hands-on training in real-world cyber operations and defensive security techniques. The course emphasizes practical cybersecurity tools, vulnerability analysis, penetration testing, and network defense within a controlled lab environment.
Students engage directly with traffic tracing, firewall configuration, network scanning, exploitation frameworks, password cracking techniques, wireless security analysis, and digital steganography. The course bridges foundational networking knowledge with applied offensive and defensive security operations.
Through structured labs and applied exercises, CYSE 301 develops operational competency in identifying, analyzing, and mitigating vulnerabilities across modern computing environments.
Key Skills & Topics
Network Traffic Analysis
- Packet inspection using Wireshark and tshark
- Traffic tracing and network behavior analysis
- Identification of suspicious activity in network environments
Vulnerability Scanning & Defense
- Network scanning with Nmap
- Firewall configuration using pfSense
- Evaluation of system vulnerabilities
- Implementation of defensive countermeasures
Penetration Testing & Exploitation
- Introduction to ethical hacking methodologies
- Metasploit Framework usage
- Attack vector enumeration
- Controlled exploitation techniques
Authentication & Password Security
- Password storage mechanisms
- Password cracking techniques
- Wi-Fi security vulnerabilities
- Wireless traffic decryption methods
Applied Cryptography & Steganography
- Cryptographic tools and protocol fundamentals
- Exploitation of weak implementations
- Digital steganography using s-tool and steghide
Course Material
Digital Steganography: Hiding Secrets in Plain Sight
🖼️ A practical lab using steghide to embed and extract hidden messages inside bitmap image files, exploring how steganography differs from cryptography and why the two are most powerful when combined.
Assignment-6-Digital-Steganography-1-fd_2Wi-Fi Password Cracking: WEP & WPA2 Analysis
🔓 A hands-on lab using aircrack-ng and Wireshark to crack WEP and WPA2 Wi-Fi traffic captures, performing protocol hierarchy analysis on decrypted packets and demonstrating how weak passwords render encryption meaningless.
Assignment-6-Wi-Fi-Password-Cracking-fd_2_1Password Cracking (System Users)
🔑 A lab focused on cracking system user password hashes using industry-standard tools, examining password storage mechanisms and demonstrating the risk of weak credential policies in real-world environments.
Assignment-5-Password-Cracking-System-Users-fd_2Penetration Testing in Windows: Exploiting SMB Vulnerabilities
💻 A controlled penetration testing lab using the Metasploit Framework to exploit SMB vulnerabilities on a Windows target, covering attack vector enumeration, exploitation, and post- exploitation analysis.
Lab-Assignment-4-Penetration-Testing-for-Windows-System-fd_4Sword vs. Shield: Network Scanning and Firewall Security
🛡️ A dual-perspective lab exploring both offensive network scanning with Nmap and defensive firewall configuration using pfSense, demonstrating how attackers enumerate targets and how defenders limit exposure.
Assignment3_Sword_vs_Shield_EC_fd_3_4Traffic Tracing & Network Packet Analysis
📡 An introductory lab using Wireshark to capture and analyze live network traffic, identifying protocols, tracing packet behavior, and building foundational skills in network forensics and anomaly detection.
CYSE301_Week2_HW_fd_Batch-Compress