Providing security and assurance to information systems has emerged as one of the most daunting technological and social challenges of recent times. Major corporations and private industry are expending a great deal of resources to develop cybersecurity technology to secure their information systems. The School is pleased to meet the expected demand for professionals trained to protect information systems by offering the security specialization. This track will provide a unique education in the development, design, and deployment of secure information systems with an emphasis on networked information systems. It will produce information technology professionals with the ability to meet special security challenges (e.g., intrusion detection) posed by conventional and emerging network information systems.
The following requirements are in addition to the course requirements of the general MSIS degree.
Information Security Required Courses
Students in the Information Security specialization must take the following three required courses:
- INFSCI 2160 - DATA MINING
- INFSCI 2621 - SECURITY MANAGEMENT AND COMPUTER FORENSICS
- TELCOM 2821 - NETWORK SECURITY
Information Security Electives
Students in the Information Security specialization must take 2 electives from the following list:
- INFSCI 2170 - CRYPTOGRAPHY
- INFSCI 2430 - SOCIAL COMPUTING
- INFSCI 2595 - MACHINE LEARNING
- INFSCI 2620 - DEVELOPING SECURE SYSTEMS
- INFSCI 2750 - CLOUD COMPUTING
Additional Approved Electives
Students may select two courses from the department’s standard graduate course offerings, including independent study and practicum experiences.
Students may also pursue opportunities that fall outside of the department’s standard graduate course offerings such as the Pittsburgh Council on Higher Education cross-registration, doctoral seminars, courses offered in other Pitt graduate departments, or undergraduate upper-level coursework in information science or computer science (1100-1999). These opportunities may not exceed six credits and require advisor approval prior to enrollment.