Department of Computer Science

Semester 2, 2024-2025

CHC5226 Foundation of Security

Coursework (50%)

The coursework is divided into two parts, which together account for 50% of your total module score:

Part 1: Seminar Assessment (10%)

Students are required to demonstrate their progress on seminar-related tasks. Marks will be awarded during designated assessment weeks by the module instructor. Only completed tasks will receive full marks during the seminar. Failure to complete the seminar task will result in a score of zero. Make sure your computer/laptop is fully functional for each seminar session.

Part 2: Secure Scheme Design or Analysis Task (40%)

Students must prepare a report on one (1) of the following topics:

1.   Design a secure cryptographic scheme to protect against existing threats in various application environments such as IoT, cloud computing, smart cities, ad hoc vehicular networks, wireless sensor networks, and medical information systems.

2.   Analyze at least three recent papers (published within the last five years) focusing on the same research direction. Prepare a report highlighting the differences and assess which approach offers the most promising advancements.

Detailed Instructions for Part 2:

• Submission Deadline: May 16, 2025, 2:00 PM

• Word Limit: 3000 words, excluding title page, abstract, contents, acknowledgements, and references.

• Penalty: Reports exceeding the word limit by 30% will be penalized.

• Academic Integrity: This task is an individual piece of work. Adherence to the university's rules on plagiarism, syndication, and cheating is mandatory.

• Report Components: Include an explanation of your results, with supporting graphs and diagrams where appropriate.

• Referencing: Use IEEE style for all sources.

Learning Outcomes:

•     Demonstrate understanding of computer and information security fundamentals.

•     Evaluate the security of existing authentication schemes and identify security flaws.

•     Apply knowledge in secure coding, cryptography, and security analysis.

•     Utilize self-awareness and communication strategies in team-based work.

Important Information for Paper Selection

• Requirements: Choose a recent paper(s) (last five years) from the provided list attached to this document. If you do not observe any potential improvements (Scheme Design), alignment with other papers (Analysis Task), you may have to select a different paper(s).

• Research Focus: If selecting multiple papers, ensure they align in research focus and assess which offers the most promising advancements.

• Procedure Compliance: Failure to follow these steps will render your submission incomplete. Avoid duplicating selections with peers. To ensure transparency and prevent overlap, after selecting your paper, you must upload the title to the link (Wechat Mini Program) that will be provided. This will allow all students to view the titles already chosen, thereby facilitating unique selections.You have to change your selection if it matches with any other student.

• First Come, First Served: The student who uploads a title first will secure that  topic. Ifa title is already listed when you check, you must choose another paper. Regularly check the updated list of chosen titles before finalizing your selection to ensure it remains unique.

Journal List for Paper Selection:

Attached to this document, is a file containing a list of journals from which you can download papers relevant to your chosen topic, provided they have been published within the last five years. While you may select papers from any journal listed in the file, it is recommended that you focus your search on Pages 17 to 23, as these pages primarily list journals related to security, which is the central theme of our module. This will help you find the most pertinent and high-quality resources for your research and analysis.

To get an idea of what you should consider, have a look at some papers from the journal and conference papers (from the list attached). These papers can be downloaded through the CDUT library portal. You have to carefully read some papers, and choose one which is best suited for you. Scrutinize the paper to find the security flaws of their proposed scheme.

•   Describe the functionality of your designed scheme in detail.

•   Perform. background research on your chosen scheme. This should focus on the associated risks and vulnerabilities of similar schemes.

•   Perform a complete Threat Analysis of the scheme.

•   Write a secure design specification that mitigates risks and includes data use recommendations.

Marking Scheme:

•   Given the broad scope of the assignment, a detailed marking scheme is difficult to define. However, performance will be evaluated based on the thoroughness of the threat analysis, the clarity of the report, and adherence to the specified structure.

Things to look for in your report:

Ensure your report is well-organized and follows the structure outlined below, with each section clearly labeled:

Abstract (5%):

•  Provide a brief explanation of what you have done in your report.

•  Include a short  summary of the existing problems your research addresses, the background of your research, and the objectives of your work.

Introduction (10%):

•     Introduce the research domain and its importance.

•     Discuss the problems of the existing schemes and the specific objectives of your report.

Related Works (5%):

•  Review and discuss relevant literature that informs and supports your research.

Preliminaries (5%):

•  Outline the basic concepts, definitions, and background information necessary for understanding your design or analysis.

Design Scheme/Analysis of Different Schemes (45%):

•  Present your cryptographic scheme or analyze the different schemes you've studied.

•  Detail  the methodologies, technologies, and processes utilized  in the design or analysis.

Comparison Analysis (20%):

•  Compare and contrast the different schemes or methodologies analyzed.

•  Highlight key differences, strengths, and weaknesses.

Conclusion and Personal Reflection (5%):

•  Summarize your findings and contributions.

•  Reflect on the research process, what you learned, and potential future work.

References (5%):

•  List all sources cited in your report following the IEEE referencing style.