ALL comp-sci courses will have compulsory infosec lessons – UK.gov

maths...

It would help if students knew the maths behind encryption. At least sufficient background to realise that:

1) algorithms are the implementation of specific mathematical equations, and are therefore subject to attack. What if the hardware is buggy or hacked?

2) Random numbers aren't, unless from a physical source. How do we detect this?

3) There is no proof that certain mathematical operations are hard, only empirical evidence so far. Is a prime number large enough given the rate of computer speed increase?

and finally, if you understand these things well, try and help those who might not get it so easily.

A rising tide raises all boats...(or something like that).

or perhaps "don't make it easy for the bastards".

P.

"Life is simple; we insist on making it complicated."--Confucius

Over the last several years, I have been reading--here, and elsewhere--about the hand-wringing and gnashing of teeth on the part of all facets of the UK establishment, both business and government, regarding the horrible results which you folks are now reaping due to the out-sourcing of IT work of every kind.

Ask your government, "Where were you when all those valuable jobs and knowledge were given away? And NOW you are playing 'savior' (sic) by spending US$ 1.3 BILLION of OUR MONEY so you can say that you're doing SOMETHING about the problem?"!

["An update by the National Audit Office for Parliament's Public Accounts Committee on the government’s National Cyber Security Programme said that "good progress" has been made in improving its understanding of the most sophisticated threats to national security.

However, the level of understanding of threats to wider public services is "varied" – which sounds like a diplomatic way of saying poor to middling."--previous El reg post]. With this kind of "progress", what is the problem?

Here's the simple solution:

Suggest to your government that, just as they allowed all the previous brain-drain to occur at no immediate, palpable, cost (face it: forcing tens of thousands,with the requisite knowledge to solve the current problems, out of work is NOT an immediate, palpable problem); that it also employ a no-cost solution to this problem: simply--again--out-source all your infosec requirements to India, China, North Korea, Iran, Afghanistan, and, indeed, anyone who submits a very low bid (I would, however, reject a bid from the US out of hand, as the quality of our software now suffers from the same problems you are now experiencing, and for the same reasons).

Info sec

Should be easy to master for us comp.sci types

1. Bounds checking when allocating memory

and thats about it

for the advanced course, we can have "beating the users to death with a sign saying 'don't f***ing open e.mail attachments' "

Soft sell

Thinking back to all of the government mandated courses I've had at school I'd say the course will be as useful as a chocolate teapot for actually protecting myself and would , instead, procrastinate on why GCHQ is so nice to the public for taking their worries away.

We'll be all fine so long as we follow the law, old or new...