Free Online Course offered by Coursera on IT Security: Defense against the digital dark arts

Coursera Platform is offering, in partnership with Google, a free online course on the theme of IT Security: Defense against the digital dark arts.

Course background:

This course covers a wide variety of IT security concepts, tools, and best practices. It introduces threats and attacks and the many ways they can show up. We’ll give you some background of encryption algorithms and how they’re used to safeguard data. Then, we’ll dive into the three As of information security: authentication, authorization, and accounting. We’ll also cover network security solutions, ranging from firewalls to Wifi encryption options. The course is rounded out by putting all these elements together into a multi-layered, in-depth security architecture, followed by recommendations on how to integrate a culture of security into your organization or team.

Course duration:

Approx. 29 hours to complete.

Course topics:

• WEEK 1: Understanding Security Threats:

Welcome to the IT Security course of the IT Support Professional Certificate! In the first week of this course, we will cover the basics of security in an IT environment. We will learn how to define and recognize security risks, vulnerabilities and threats. We'll identify the most common security attacks in an organization and understand how security revolves around the "CIA" principle.

By the end of this module, you will know the types of malicious software, network attacks, client-side attacks, and the essential security terms you'll see in the workplace.

• WEEK 2: Pelcgbybtl (Cryptology):

In the second week of this course, we'll learn about cryptology. We'll explore different types of encryption practices and how they work. We'll show you the most common algorithms used in cryptography and how they've evolved over time. By the end of this module, you'll understand how symmetric encryption, asymmetric encryption, and hashing work; you'll also know how to choose the most appropriate cryptographic method for a scenario you may see in the workplace.

• WEEK 3: AAA Security (Not Roadside Assistance):

In the third week of this course, we'll learn about the "three A's" in cybersecurity. No matter what type of tech role you're in, it's important to understand how authentication, authorization, and accounting work within an organization. By the end of this module, you'll be able to choose the most appropriate method of authentication, authorization, and level of access granted for users in an organization.

• WEEK 4: Securing Your Networks:

In the fourth week of this course, we'll learn about secure network architecture. It's important to know how to implement security measures on a network environment, so we'll show you some of the best practices to protect an organization's network. We'll learn about some of the risks of wireless networks and how to mitigate them. We'll also cover ways to monitor network traffic and read packet captures. By the end of this module, you'll understand how VPNs, proxies and reverse proxies work.

•  WEEK 5: Defense in Depth:

In the fifth week of this course, we're going to go more in-depth into security defense. We'll cover ways to implement methods for system hardening, application hardening, and determine the policies for OS security. By the end of this module, you'll know why it's important to disable unnecessary components of a system, learn about host-based firewalls, setup anti-malware protection, implement disk encryption, and configure software patch management and application policies.

•  WEEK 6: Creating a Company Culture for Security:

Congratulations, you've made it to the final week in the course! In the last week of this course, we'll explore ways to create a company culture for security. It's important for any tech role to determine appropriate measures to meet the three goals of security. By the end of this module, you will develop a security plan for an organization to demonstrate the skills you've learned in this course. You're almost done, keep up the great work!

Course objectives:

By the end of this course, you’ll be able to: 

1. how various encryption algorithms and techniques work as well as their benefits and limitations. 
2. various authentication systems and types. 
3. the difference between authentication and authorization. 
4. how to evaluate potential risks and recommend ways to reduce risk. 
5. best practices for securing a network. 
6. how to help others to grasp security concepts and protect themselves.

Course costs:

As this course is a part of larger Google IT Support Professional Certificate, learner can to enroll for free and gets:

• Unlimited access to all courses in the certificate including: Watching lectures, trying assignments, participating in discussion forums, and more.
• Canceling option at any time: No penalties - simply cancel before the trial ends if it's not right for you.
• $49 USD per month to continue learning after trial ends: Go as fast as you can - the faster you go, the more you save.
• Certificate when you complete, that you can share on your resume, LinkedIn, and CV.
• Learner who can’t afford to pay required fees is eligible to apply for financial aid, that allows him/her to get everything a fee-payer learner gets.

When completing the certificate:

• FREE career resources when you complete the Professional Certificate.
• Includes resume builder and mock interviews (a $948 USD value).

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