Certificate Requirements

To receive the certificate, students are required to take the four required courses, and one of the elective courses listed below (or an approved elective from a related field), for a total of fifteen credit hours. A minimum GPA of 3.0 is required in all courses applied to this certificate program.

Required Courses:

CGS 5131 - Computer Forensics I: (3 credits) Seizure and Forensic Examination of Computer Systems.

• Prerequisites:Graduate status or permission of instructor.
• Description:Legal issues regarding seizure and chain of custody. Technical issues in acquiring computer evidence. popular file systems are examined. Reporting issues in the legal system. For a copy of the course syllabus click here

CGS 5132 - Computer Forensics II: (3 credits) Network Security, Intrusion Detection, and Forensic Analysis.

• Prerequisites:Undergraduate degree in CS or a closely related field,
  or CGS 5131, or permission of instructor.
• Description:Computer network protocols and security, network intrusion detection and prevention, digital evidence collection and evaluation, and legal issues involved in network forensics. For a copy of the course syllabus click here

CHS 5503 - Topics in Forensic Science: (3 credits) Topics in Forensic Science will include the history of Forensic Science and current issues such as digital evidence. For a copy of the course syllabus click here

CHS 5518 - Forensic Collection and Examination of Digital Evidence: (3 credits) This course will cover the nature of digital evidence collection and examination under the constraints of law and courtroom procedure. For a copy of the course syllabus click here

or as an alternate:

CHS 5596 - Forensic Expert in Courtroom: (3 credits) A study of the use
of technology and scientifically trained expert witnesses at trial.

Elective Courses:

DIG 5835 (previously IDS 5790) - The Practice of Digital Forensics: (3 credits) This course will provide students with an understanding of the practice of digital forensics in the real world. The focus will be on understanding how to apply the forensic methodology. For a copy of the course syllabus click here

CAP 6133: (3 credits) Advanced Topics in Computer Security and Computer Forensics

• Prerequisites:CDA 5501, COP 5611, COT 5405
• Description:Advanced topics in computer security and forensics such as cryptography, automatic intrusion detection, pattern matching and statistical techniques, firewalls, vulnerability scanning. For a copy of the course syllabus click here