HUNTSVILLE, AL - The University of Alabama in Huntsville has established an innovative master's program protecting information and information systems from unauthorized access and emerging security threats.
The Master of Science in Information Assurance and Security (MSIAS) at UAHuntsville was created to develop management leaders in the field of information assurance and security, according to university representatives.
The MSIAS degree is a unique program in that it is an interdisciplinary program of study among three university colleges -- Business Administration, Engineering and Computer Science, according to Provost Vistasp Karbhari.
"By bringing this mix of disciplines into the classroom this program emulates the real world challenges of engineers, managers, and scientists who must work together to resolve their IT security challenges," he said. "The threats are numerous -- viruses, intrusions, industrial espionage -- and security requires a basic awareness of the physical, personnel, and technical (network/application/hardware/software) dimensions of information systems."
The MSIAS program is enrolling students this fall. The college offering one of the following tracks will award the degree:
Business Track
The business track looks at the security requirements mandated by statutory authority and analysis of business impact as it relates to the system development life cycle. This track introduces tools and techniques for proven methodologies in technical project management related to integrating information security best practices into system development while minimizing associated risks.
Computer Science Track
The Computer Science track involves developing, documenting and maintaining secure coding practices for scripts and applications. Also included are the design aspects of networks ensuring a risk-mitigated network in relation to confidentiality, integrity and the availability of data and devices.
Engineering Track
The Engineering track takes existing and proven practices and enhances them with an education in the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the Defense Information Assurance Certification And Accreditation Process (DIACAP). This approach will address security issues in future technologies during the concept and requirements stage of system design and the formulation of the hardware design. This type of forward thinking security design is void in the industry today.
Students graduating from the MSIAS program will be able to perform: cyber security analysis of vulnerabilities and threats to network environments, network penetration testing, auditing for certification and accreditation, technical project management in information technology. Students will also be able to integrate the business and scientific underpinnings of information technology trends related to the system development life cycle and understand the federal, state and local statutory requirements associated with information security through the information assurance technical framework.
For more information about the MSIAS program, please call Jackie Siniard at 256-824-6316 or visit the MSIAS program website.
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