Syllabus

Credit: 1 Unit

Spring 2025 Semester

Accepted for Credit: CSU

Course Description

This course is intended for beginner users who want to increase their understanding of information security issues and practices. It is intended for end users who use computers at home or in the office. The course covers all of the need-to-know information about staying secure, including up-to-date information on relevant topics such as protecting mobile devices and wireless local area networks. Students will learn how to maintain a secure environment and avoid security attacks through a series of real-life user experiences, hands-on projects, and case projects.

Learning Outcomes and Objectives

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

• Analyze fundamental security concepts. (SLO 1)

  • Describe the challenges of securing information and define information security and explain why it is important.

  • Identify the types of attackers that are common today.

  • List the basic steps of an attack.

• Apply sound personal security principles. (SLO 2)

  • Describe personal security defenses.

  • Describe the attacks against passwords.

  • Describe identity theft and the risks of using social networking.

• Identify the needs for a secure computer. (SLO 3)

  • List and describe the different types of attacks on computers.

  • Explain how to manage patches.

  • Describe how to install and use antivirus software.

  • Describe how to recover from an attack.

• Configure a strategy to fight against Internet-based attacks. (SLO 4)

  • Explain how the Internet and e-mail work.

  • Describe how attackers can use mobile code, cookies, and fraudulent digital certificates.

  • List the security risks with using e-mail.

• Formulate proven security practices in the workplace. (SLO 5)

  • Define physical access and list the tools used to restrict it.

  • Describe how tokens and cards can be used for security.

  • Explain what a security policy is and list several different policies.

  • Define technology and procedural access control.

  • List the steps to be taken to prepare for a crisis.

Prerequisite(s)

None.

Advisory

Some experience and/or coursework in networking.

Textbook(s)

A textbook is not required for this course since all materials are available via the Cisco Networking Academy website.

Paper-based versions of the textbook and lab manual are available for purchase via Cisco Press.

Course Orientation

To learn more about this class, and about Prof. Geissler and his approaches to teaching, grading, and helping you learn, watch the Orientation Video.

Office Hours

During the Spring 2025 semester Prof. Geissler will hold office hours during these times unless otherwise announced:

• Tuesdays: 10:30 AM - 12:00 NOON (in room BS-153 and via Zoom)

• Wednesdays: 9:00 AM - 10:15 AM (via Zoom ONLY)

• Thursdays: 10:30 AM - 12:00 NOON (in room BS-153 and via Zoom)

To meet with Prof. Geissler during these office hours, click here to start a Zoom session. Note: Prof. Geissler will be notified when Zoom assigns you to the waiting room, and he will admit you to the Zoom session when he becomes available.

If you wish to meet with Prof. Geissler in person or outside of his scheduled office hours, please send him a Canvas message (current students) or an email message to markus.geissler@crc.losrios.edu (past students, future students, industry partners, etc.) to request an appointment.

Prof. Geissler's office is room BS-137, located on the north side of the Business & Social Science (BS) building, and facing the Science building, on the main campus of Cosumnes River College. The parking lot closest to room BS-137 is Lot D on the south side of campus.

Course Requirements

Since this class is offered in a lecture/lab online format, you need to access the course materials for each unit via the Cisco Networking Academy website. You are responsible for completing the assignments listed in the Class Calendar by the listed deadlines and for being available at the scheduled times to take the Exams, Checkpoint Exams, and Final Exams.

If you need to drop the course for any reason, it is your responsibility to do so by using eServices.

Lecture/Online Materials

Whether you are enrolled in an online or hybrid class, you should use the tools available through the Cisco Networking Academy website to help you learn. These tools include online reading, video lectures, lecture slides, interactive discussions, and more. If you have questions, you email them to your instructor or to the Instructional Assistant for this class (if available), or post them in the “Questions for the Instructional Assistant” Discussion Board within Canvas. 

Assignments

Your instructor will assign reading and hands-on homework assignments based on information in the textbook, online lectures, and additional information presented as part of this class.

The due dates for your assignments are listed on the Class Calendar for your class.

• Class Calendar for the 1st 8-week Online class

You should transfer all assignment due dates to your personal calendar to help you keep track of when they are due.

Late Assignment Policy

Since all assignments are published well in advance of their due dates, you are expected to post your assignments in NetAcad or Canvas before their respective deadlines unless otherwise specified. Technical problems or ISP outages are not valid reasons for submitting late work unless they involve the documented failure of a Los Rios IT resource, such as Canvas, or a Cisco resource, such as NetAcad. Please plan ahead and complete your assignments before the due date to minimize the impact of any technical problems.

Late assignments will not be accepted for credit. Your instructor will consider assigning credit for late submissions in rare emergencies if you can 1. provide a written verification of emergencies from your employer, a law enforcement officer, or a physician, and 2. send the assignment, along with the appropriate verification, to your professor no later than one week of the assignment's initial due date. 

Make-up Policy

Final Exams cannot be made up. If your employer is requiring you to attend a mandatory training or similar one-time event, contact your instructor prior to the exam to request an alternate exam time.

If you are going to be unable to participate in class activities for more than one week due to an emergency, please inform your instructor as soon as possible so that he might assist you with keeping up with your studies and assignment due dates until your emergency is resolved.

Academic Integrity Statement

Cosumnes River College values academic integrity (honesty, trust, fairness, respect, and responsibility). It recognizes that individuals can achieve their maximum potential and contribute appropriately to the well-being of the larger community only if they recognize the ethical dimensions of decisions and actions. The college assumes all members of the academic community will exhibit academic integrity supporting student access, academic quality, academic rigor, innovation, and collegiality.

Academic Honesty

To ensure the highest degree of academic integrity and to maximize the value of your education at Cosumnes River College, please read and follow the Cosumnes River College Honor Code:

Cosumnes River College Honor Code*

Approved by the Cosumnes River College Academic Senate on 10-26-07
Approved by the Cosumnes River College Executive Council on 3-27-08

I understand that Cosumnes River College (CRC) values academic integrity. Academic integrity requires:

Honesty, which means:

• A commitment to truthfulness

• The refusal to steal or mislead, cheat or plagiarize

Fairness, which means:

• The willingness to treat others as I would wish to be treated upon careful consideration

Respect, which means valuing, in attitude and practice:

• All human beings

• Myself

• My community at CRC and beyond

Responsibility, which means:

• Recognizing that the quality of a CRC education and the quality of the CRC student experience depend upon my behavior

• Accepting, at all times, the consequences of my actions

I understand that I, as a member of the Cosumnes River College community, am responsible for upholding this value, supporting academic quality, academic rigor, and an appropriate college atmosphere.

* This code is modeled after that of Santa Monica Community College, Santa Monica, CA

Cheating and Plagiarism

Definition of Plagiarism*

Plagiarism is defined as representing the words, ideas, or work of another as one’s own in any academic exercise. Plagiarism consists of taking the words or substance of another work and either copying or paraphrasing without giving credit to the source. Plagiarism is applicable to written, oral, and artistic work. The following examples are only some of the many forms plagiarism may take:

• Word-for-word copying of work written by someone else.

• Failure to give proper credit for ideas, statements of facts, or conclusions derived by another.

• Failure to use quotation marks when quoting directly from another, whether a paragraph, sentence, or phrase.

• Close and extended paraphrasing of another work without acknowledging the source.

You must independently complete and submit your own assignments. Please note that, quotes may not exceed 25% of an assignment submission's total length. If I determine that you committed plagiarism, you will earn '0' points for that assignment, and you will also forfeit any extra credit points available in the class, even if you have already completed and submitted the extra credit assignment. I will furthermore report the plagiarism incident to Cosumnes River College's disciplinary authorities for their action. As the only exception to this policy, you are permitted to have a friend or relative proofread your work to help ensure proper use of spelling and grammar. I would therefore encourage you to complete assignments early so that you can take advantage of this option.

Definition of Cheating*

Cheating is the act of obtaining or attempting to obtain credit for academic work through the use of dishonest, deceptive, or fraudulent means. The following are only some of the many forms cheating may take:

• Copying another’s work on a test, paper, or project.

• Using unauthorized materials in an exam or collaborating on work to be turned in for credit where the instructor disallows such collaboration.

• Taking an exam for another student, purposely allowing another student to copy during a test, or providing coursework for another student to turn in as his or her own effort.

• Fabricating, falsifying or misrepresenting data or results from experiments, interviews or surveys.

• Submitting the same work in more than one class for credit without permission from the instructor.

You must independently take your own quizzes and exams. If your instructor determines that you cheated on a quiz or an exam, he will assign you '0' points for that quiz or exam, you must count the '0' score toward your final grade, and you will also forfeit any extra credit points available in the class, even if you have already completed and submitted the extra credit assignment. In addition, your instructor will report the cheating incident to Cosumnes River College's disciplinary authorities for their action.

If your instructor determines that you have repeatedly committed plagiarism or cheated, he will assign you a grade of 'F' for this course. In addition, your instructor will report the repeat offense to Cosumnes River College's disciplinary authorities for their action.

Please contact your instructor at any time if you have any questions about plagiarism or cheating.

* The Academic Integrity Statement and the definitions of Plagiarism and Cheating are taken or adapted from Cosumnes River College's website.

Use of Generative AI Tools

Note: To help you prepare for your responsible use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools (OpenAI's ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Microsoft Bing Chat, etc.) during your careers, you are explicitly encouraged to support your learning with the responsible use of such tools in this class. When submitting assignments which were developed at least in part with the help of generative AI tools, however, you must include the following statement at the top of the assignment and include the name of the generative AI tool and an approximate percentage:

I used [Insert the name of the generative AI tool here.] to help me with completing approximately [Insert the appropriate percentage here.] percent of this assignment, and I used other sources to verify that the AI-supplied content was accurate at the time of generation.

Including the above statement with your assignment submission will not result in a grade deduction, as long as you have verified the accuracy of the generative AI content. But if you used one or more generative AI tools and failed to include the above statement with your assignment submission, you would commit plagiarism since your assignment would then include content generated by others without your assigning them proper credit.

Electronic Device Policy

For the benefit of everyone's learning experience, please set your cell phones and similar electronic devices to either the silent or vibrate mode during on-campus class meetings. If your phone rings during any on-campus activity, your instructor will be happy to answer it for you or read the recently arrived message aloud for everyone to enjoy.

Instructional Assistant(s)

If you need help with completing your assignments or with accessing resources for this class, you should contact the Online Instructional Assistant (IA) for this class or an IA in the one of the computer labs. Check your class in Canvas for more information on how to reach the Online IA and for their hours of availability.

Accommodations for Students with Disabilities

Cosumnes River College is committed to providing reasonable accommodations for all persons with disabilities, and your instructor strives to ensure that all content in this class is accessible.

Students with disabilities: If you are seeking classroom accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act, you need to register with CRC's Disability Support Programs & Services (DSP&S). DSP&S is located in room BS-104, and their phone number is +1-916-691-7275. To receive academic accommodations for this class, you need to contact DSP&S first.

If you already have a DSP&S Accommodation Letter, please submit it to your instructor as soon as possible. The sooner your instructor receives your accommodation letter, the sooner they can extend your time on timed assignments (i.e., quizzes), help ensure that you can access course materials, and arrange for taking exams in an alternate environment, if applicable.

The easiest way for most of you to submit your DSP&S Accommodation Letter will be to scan your letter, or take a picture of it with your phone, and send it to your instructor as an attachment to a Canvas Message or an email message.

Computer Lab Hours

You may need to use the CRC Computer Lab (room LRC-204) or the CRC Business Computer Lab (room BS-145A) for some of your assignments. The Elk Grove Center Computer Lab (EGA-204) may also be a convenient alternative for you. Please refer to the CRC website for their current hours of operation.

If you are looking for special software that may be required for your class but that you do not have installed on your computer (such as Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Access, etc.), visit one of CRC's virtual computer labs. Simply log in with your Los Rios ID (w0003070) and password, and then select an available lab computer. If in doubt, select BS145A since this virtual computer will have all of the software installed that you would need for this class. Once the virtual computer has started up you will be able to access the same software to which you would have had access on campus, including Microsoft Office Professional.

The most convenient parking lot for the CRC Computer Lab (room LRC-204) is Lot F near the CRC stadium. The most convenient parking lot for the CRC Business Computer Lab (room BS-145A) is Lot D on the south side of the CRC campus.

Note: Please be sure to visit or call each lab for its hours of operation around campus holidays and during Final Exam Week.

Email Account

To effectively participate in this class you must keep up with reading the Announcements that your professor will occasionally post in Canvas. You can configure forwarding options within Canvas and Los Rios Gmail, if you wish to have your emails forwarded to your personal email account. You should also update your forwarding options right away if you change your preferred email address during the semester.

Email and Discussion Board Netiquette

To help maintain a positive learning environment, your professor will not tolerate rude and demeaning comments, posts, or emails to anyone in this class. Please keep your comments and emails topic-related and professional. If your professor determines that a comment, post, or email to anyone else in the class is rude or demeaning, he will issue one warning to you. If your behavior continues to be unacceptable, your professor will refer you to the college's administration for disciplinary action.

The Access Code for the Syllabus Quiz in Canvas is Cyber (case-sensitive; no spaces).

Evaluation

Comprehensive Final Exam: 40%

Module Quizzes: 40%

Lab Assignments: 10%

Online Class Discussions: 10%

Grading

A - 90% or higher;

B - 80% - 89.99%;

C - 70% - 79.99%;

D - 60% - 69.99%;

F - less than 60%;

Note: To earn a final grade of 'C' or better for this course your score on the Final Exam must be at least 60%.

If you have questions, visit Prof. Geissler during office hours, or send him a Canvas Message or an email to markus.geissler@crc.losrios.edu .

Last updated: November 05, 2024