from the Lesson-1:-protect-users'-personal-data dept.
The British Signals Intelligence agency GCHQ has just accredited six UK universities to teach Master's degrees in online security that meet the intelligence agency's "stringent criteria". From the press release: "The certification of six Master's degrees in Cyber Security was announced by Rt.Hon Francis Maude, Minister for the Cabinet Office, when he visited GCHQ today. This marks another significant step in the development of the UK's knowledge, skills and capability in all fields of Cyber Security as part of the National Cyber Security Programme. The National Cyber Security Strategy recognises education as key to the development of Cyber Security skills and, earlier in the year, UK universities were invited to submit their Cyber Security Master's degrees for certification against GCHQ's stringent criteria for a broad foundation in Cyber Security." Bonus point for figuring out if it's to protect and serve or attack and exploit.
[Ed's Comment: GCHQ, like the NSA, is dual roled in that part of the organisation is tasked with the penetration of potential enemy systems, and part is tasked with securing the UK's own communication and IT networks against enemy attack.]
(Score: 3, Insightful) by PizzaRollPlinkett on Monday August 04 2014, @02:04PM
The bad guys don't get degrees. They are immersed in hacking.
I don't know about the UK. I do know it's sort of funny that the USA's "cyber" industry has the military hiring consultants who have degrees from ITT and similar places to fight the world's best hackers. That would be like recruiting Navy SEALs from Manpower and Kelly temp agencies.
And so it goes.
Oops, wrong tag line. Mine is: I'm going to microwave my cat.
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(Score: 2) by VLM on Monday August 04 2014, @02:33PM
It has certain implications that for invasion defense, you really do just need enormous numbers of grunts filling sandbags and digging trenches at the bottom of the labor pyramid.
So hiring an army of apprentice sysadmins to apply security patches and change default configs is pretty much the required bottom of the pyramid and is a good job for those guys.
A large part of cyber security is pure security theater, so I would imagine a masters level class involves lots of snake oil selling classes and drama/theater-tech type of classes.
There are certain empire building implications that an empire of 1000 keyboard jockeys doing manual labor is awesome from an empire building and security theater view, although I could replace all 1000 of them by a very small puppet script, so effectiveness isn't going to be too high. Then again whenever big brother fails us (all too often) it can always be papered over with "who ever could have expected" and "can't talk about it, national security". So effectiveness isn't really needed or even on the feature list.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by dublet on Monday August 04 2014, @02:07PM
I presume none of these degrees will have an 'ethics' module?
"If anyone needs me, I'm in the angry dome. [dublet.org]"
(Score: 4, Insightful) by VLM on Monday August 04 2014, @02:35PM
Never slowed down the MBAs, so I'm not thinking it would be a show stopper.
(Score: 3, Funny) by Nerdfest on Monday August 04 2014, @02:52PM
I'd swear many MBA programs test to ensure you *don't* have any ethics.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by c0lo on Monday August 04 2014, @08:50PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 2) by aristarchus on Monday August 04 2014, @09:27PM
Not sure about these programs, but the ethics of cyberwarfare is a hot topic in academic circles recently. That and ethics in Information technology in general. Seems to be replacing the Bio-ethics boom of a decade or two ago.
Conference on cyberwar ethics, right here: http://ccdcoe.org/ethics-and-policies-cyber-warfare.html [ccdcoe.org]
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Nerdfest on Monday August 04 2014, @02:19PM
Based on what we've seen from the US, anyone in, or even applying to these programs also goes on their watch lists. Maybe the final exam is removing yourself.
(Score: 2) by kaszz on Monday August 04 2014, @04:17PM
Honey trap (tm) in other words with a worthless exam as bait ..
Something makes me wonder how real hackers would be made in school rather than with the bare metal.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday August 05 2014, @03:02PM
I'm just curious what things can simultaneously get a person noticed and NOT get a person on the watch list. Seems to me that McCarthyism is alive and well at the present.
Posting as A.C. since I've moderated here. mrider
(Score: 3, Insightful) by wantkitteh on Monday August 04 2014, @03:33PM
Following the reclassification of the entire population as a potential enemy, this now means that the two halves of the organisation are at war with each other. I propose we solve the problem with a Quake death match tomorrow lunchtime - far cheaper!