ECE 424/ CS 463: Computer Security II
Home | Schedule | Canvas | Campuswire | Office Hours
| Instructor | Varun Chandrasekaran (varunc@illinois.edu) |
|---|---|
| TAs | Ritvik Kumar (ritvik3@illinois.edu) |
| Dylen Greenwald (dgree21@illinois.edu) | |
| Eklavya Tyagi (etyagi2@illinois.edu) | |
| Time/Location | PG/ PU Section: online and asynchronous |
| DSO Section: online and asynchronous | |
| Syllabus | Link to Syllabus |
| Instructor Office Hours | By appointment |
Announcement
8/28/2026: By popular demand, we will continue to use Campuswire for course announcements, Q&A, and discussions. Please check Campuswire regularly throughout the semester.
Canvas will be used for sharing grades and other course-related materials. Course lectures and associated content will be available through Coursera.
If you are enrolled in the course but do not have access to Canvas, Campuswire, or Coursera, please fill out this access form. You may use the same form to report missing access to any of these course platforms.
A note on access: The course administrative team can directly add enrolled students to Canvas and Campuswire, and we will use the responses to the form above to resolve those access issues. Unfortunately, we cannot directly add students to Coursera; Coursera access is provisioned separately by the university.
On-campus students who do not have access to Coursera should first read the Grainger College instructions for Coursera-based courses. Please read these instructions carefully before registering for a Coursera-based course.
In particular, you must complete the required Coursera onboarding course before you will receive access to this course on Coursera. If you have not yet completed the onboarding course, please do so before reporting a Coursera access problem.
If you have (1) followed the Grainger College instructions, (2) completed the Coursera onboarding course, and (3) still do not have access, please fill out the course access form. Please allow up to one week for the access issue to be resolved.
If you have completed all of the steps above, submitted the access form, and have still not received Coursera access after one week, please email Varun Chandrasekaran (varunc@illinois.edu) and Christine Martinez (cmartinz@illinois.edu) to let us know that you are still waiting for access. Please only escalate by email after completing the onboarding and access-form steps above and allowing one week for processing.
We apologize if getting access is taking some time. The first week of class is often challenging for enrollment and platform access, and these issues affect courses across the university. Please do not worry if an access delay prevents you from immediately keeping up with the course. We understand the situation, and you will have an opportunity to make up for material or work affected by these access delays.
MPs will be released and submitted via GitHub. If you have not done so already, please create a GitHub account. We will provide detailed instructions for joining the class repository and checking out the MPs.
Instructor office hours with Varun will be by appointment only. TA office hours will be posted on the course office-hours page.
Class Description
The course focuses on various aspects of data-centric security and privacy. Topics include applied cryptography, trusted base, privacy, anonymity, non-interference, information flow, intrusion detection, machine learning and security, password security, policy composition and analysis, formal approaches to specification and verification of secure systems, and security and privacy of emerging systems.
Course Information: 3 undergraduate hours. 3 or 4 graduate hours. Prerequisites: CS 225. Additional prerequisites or corequisites may be specified each term.
Learning Goals: Identify and address privacy issues in online social networks; Apply machine learning to security and address adversarial machine learning; Use crypto constructs (homomorphic encryption, multi-party computation, etc.); Identify and address issues with de-identification; Use hardware designed to support trusted computing; Reason about information flow and computational security for encryption; Recognize threats and design mitigations for security in key sectors (e.g., healthcare); Understand architecture and recognize threats for smartphone security; Recognize issues with web privacy (especially tracking and advertising); Analyze human factors as they affect privacy and security; Recognize and reason about password security.
Important Note: The course assumes a basic knowledge of programming, computer systems, and statistics. The class will expect the ability to program in Python (primary), and Java (secondary).
Grading Rubric
| Component | Weight |
|---|---|
| Machine Problems (MPs) | 50% |
| Midterm Exam | 15% |
| Final Exam | 35% |
| Total | 100% |
Exams
Midterm Exam
The midterm exam will be administered online and will cover all course material up to the midterm.
- Format: Online
- Resources: Open book
- Coverage: All material covered up to the midterm
Additional details regarding the timing and format will be announced during the semester.
Final Exam
The final exam will take place during the final week of class. Students will have the entire final week to complete the exam.
- Format: Fully online and proctored
- Availability: Final week of class
- Resources: Closed book
- Cheat sheet: One A4-sized cheat sheet is permitted
- Coverage: All course material
Additional instructions regarding proctoring and the exam window will be announced during the semester.
Expected Work
Machine Problems (MPs): Students are expected to work on 5 MPs throughout the semester (individual effort only). The problems will involve hands-on programming and data analysis, covering various topics that complement the lecture topics. Example topics include tracking user location based on social network data, interacting with Bitcoin APIs, and multi-party computation without directly exchanging data. All deadlines are 11:59 PM (CT) on the specified date.
Course Materials
WEEK | STUDY MATERIAL |
|---|---|
| Week 1 | Course Plan |
| Introduction | |
| Week 2 | Social Networks |
| De-Identification | |
| Week 3 | Machine Learning 1 |
| Machine Learning 2 | |
| Week 4 | Basic Crypto |
| Crypto Construct | |
| Week 5 | Trusted Computing 1 |
| Trusted Computing 2 | |
| Week 6 | Bitcoin |
| Information Flow | |
| Week 7 | Healthcare |
| Week 8 | Smartphones 1 |
| Smartphones 2 | |
| Week 9 | Crypto Models 1 |
| Crypto Models 2 | |
| Week 10 | Web Privacy |
| Deep Fake | |
| Week 11 | Automobile |
| Automobile AML | |
| Week 12 | Password Security |
| Side Channel Attack | |
| Week 13 | Stylometry |
| Cyber Warfare |
Policies
Late Policy:
Please see the individual assignment instructions.
Academic Integrity: For detailed information on our plagiarism guidelines and consequences, please refer to the Plagiarism Policy.
Special Accommodations:
If you need special accommodations because of a disability, please contact the instructor in the first week of classes.
Diminished Mental Health:
Diminished mental health, including significant stress, mood changes, excessive worry, substance/alcohol abuse, or problems with eating and/or sleeping can interfere with optimal academic performance, social development, and emotional wellbeing. The University of Illinois offers a variety of confidential services including individual and group counseling, crisis intervention, psychiatric services, and specialized screenings at no additional cost. If you or someone you know experiences any of the above mental health concerns, it is strongly encouraged to contact or visit any of the University’s resources provided below. Getting help is a smart and courageous thing to do – for yourself and for those who care about you.
- Counseling Center: 217-333-3704, 610 East John Street Champaign, IL 61820
- McKinley Health Center: 217-333-2700, 1109 South Lincoln Avenue, Urbana, Illinois 61801
Statement on CS CARES and CS Values and Code of Conduct
All members of the Illinois Computer Science department - faculty, staff, and students - are expected to adhere to the CS Values and Code of Conduct. The CS CARES Committee is available to serve as a resource to help people who are concerned about or experience a potential violation of the Code. If you experience such issues, please contact the CS CARES Committee. The instructors of this course are also available for issues related to this class.