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CS 3106N / Notes / Modules 1–6, 8–14, 18

Notes

Each module written out to read before the deck asks about it: the ideas in order, the tables worth memorising, the formulas, and the mistakes that cost marks. Where a picture helps there is a drawing, and where a number can be worked there is a model to try.

  1. M1Threats, Vulnerabilities & AttacksThis module is the catalogue of what can go wrong: where attackers get in, who they target, and the named attacks behind each route. Checkpoint questions mostly ask you to name, tell apart and match these attacks.
  2. M2Securing NetworksThis module sets out the vocabulary of network security: what is at stake for a business, how threats, risks and exploits relate, and who the attackers are. The definitions are examined word for word, so learn them precisely.
  3. M3Attacking the FoundationIP, TCP and UDP were built to move data, not to protect it. This module shows which header fields and design choices attackers abuse, from ICMP floods to the SYN flood.
  4. M4Attacking What We DoModule 4 covers attacks on the everyday protocols and services a network relies on (ARP, DNS, DHCP, the web, email) and the standard defences against them. Expect to name the attack, say how it works and give the matching countermeasure.
  5. M5Wireless Network CommunicationModule 5 explains how wireless LANs work, what threatens them and which security modes protect them. The exam focus is the difference between 802.11 and wired Ethernet, the WLAN threats, and the WEP, WPA, WPA2 and WPA3 progression.
  6. M6Network Security InfrastructureModule 6 covers the devices and protocols that secure and monitor a network: firewalls, IDS and IPS, ACLs, the monitoring protocols (SNMP, NetFlow, syslog, NTP), AAA and VPNs. Expect to compare similar technologies side by side.
  7. M8Linux OverviewLinux is the operating system most SOC work runs on: open source, driven from the command line and built for networks. This module covers the shell, servers and ports, logs, file permissions, links, processes and rootkits.
  8. M9System & Endpoint ProtectionEvery endpoint is a way into the network, so protection layers host-based tools (antimalware, host firewall, HIDS/HIPS) on top of network-based ones. This module covers OS hardening, patching, antimalware, host intrusion detection, boot integrity and shrinking the attack surface.
  9. M10Cybersecurity Principles, Practices & ProcessesModule 10 organises everything in cybersecurity into one model, the cybersecurity cube: what you protect (goals), where the data is (states) and how you protect it (countermeasures). Expect to name all three dimensions and sort examples into them.
  10. M11Understanding DefenseModule 11 is about defending an organisation on purpose: know what you own, know what can hurt it, then stack layers so one failure does not expose everything. The exam weights defense-in-depth (onion versus artichoke, the five strategies), asset management and the policy types.
  11. M12System & Network DefenseModule 12 is the widest in the unit: it hardens a system from the front door to the data centre, covering physical security, applications, network services, segmentation, wireless and mobile devices, resilience and embedded systems. The exam leans on RAID, availability and five nines, the DMZ zones, and wireless security.
  12. M13Access ControlAccess control decides who gets in (authentication), what they may do (authorization) and what they did (accounting), under least privilege and zero trust. Expect questions on control types, the access control models, the authentication factors and RADIUS versus TACACS+.
  13. M14Access Control ListsAn ACL is an ordered list of permit and deny statements a router checks top-down, first match wins, with a hidden deny at the end. Expect wildcard masks, standard versus extended, placement and writing the IOS commands.
  14. M18CryptographyCryptography protects data on the wire: encryption hides it, hashes and signatures prove it was not changed and who sent it, and PKI says whose public key you are holding. The exam asks you to pick the right tool for each goal, and to do RSA and Diffie-Hellman by hand with small numbers.