Welcome to CS 6431, security and privacy technologies. This is a PhD-level course focused on academic research in computer security. We will take a tour of a variety of contemporary research topics, with an eye towards not only learning something about the individual topics, but also dissecting what makes for successful research in computer security. Computer security is quite broad, which is one of its appeals -- security issues arise in any area, and security is hard.
Instructor: Tom Ristenpart (he/him) (https://rist.tech.cornell.edu)
Office hours: By appointment
PhD classes taught by Cornell Tech instructors, including this one, are broadcast to both Cornell campuses, in NYC and Ithaca. Protocols for masking and other COVID-19 precautions will follow those rules at the respective campus. Wear a mask and don't come in if feeling ill, please! If you have concerns about COVID-19 safety feel free to reach out to me.
Note that the Gates hall room was changed from G11 to G13, which is slightly bigger.
A zoom link will be shared via Canvas. I might occassionally deliver lectures remotely using the same zoom link, and will announce that via the schedule (see below). The default will be in-person instruction from NYC. Please attend class in-person when I'm teaching in-person; please let me know if you need to attend remotely. If so, the default should be camera on.
That said, I should be able to monitor Zoom chat in case students want to ask questions or make comments, in addition to raising hands during class. This may help depending on AV setup quality.
Classrooms: G13 (Gates Hall, Ithaca) and B091 (Bloomberg, NYC)
This class is for CS PhD students, though PhD students from other departments with suitable background may get a lot out of it as well. Please contact me if you have concerns about your background.
Space allowing, I will make exceptions for undergrads or masters students who have significant research or other relevant experience.
If interested, please come to the first day of class or contact me soon after; this will give me a sense of demand and how we are doing on physical space.
The class will focus on topics in computer security. You will need to read papers prior to class, and be engaged in discussions. I hope to set aside time during class for small group discussions on papers, though we may have to experiment a bit with the AV setup.
- Class participation: 20%
Problem setsProject proposal and project reviews: 20%- Project proposal: 20%
- Project: 40%
Problem sets will be on topics discussed in papers, and will test your understanding of the papers. I will not grade these in detail, but rather perform random spot checks to ensure appropriate effort. Late days will be allowed if I haven't gotten around to spot checking yet.
The project will be the biggest piece of this class; the class is, after all, an introduction to research in computer security. Projects can be in small groups that will depend on final enrollment. I will update the schedule with information on due dates.
See this PDF for a discussion of project and deliverables. It may still be updated, ask me if you have questions.
The evolving schedule is available here.