Introduction to Computer Systems for Security Professionals (3)

Aspects of computer systems and software that directly relate to media analysis, i.e., storage, memory, the structure of file systems, and system peripherals that may contain evidence. Laboratory fee.

Introduction to Network Systems for Security Professionals (3)

Aspects of network tools, administrative tools, network protocols, and fundamentals of TCP/IP that can be used to carry out a network-based attack. Development of a working knowledge of how information is processed and can be intercepted on the Internet/Intranet. Laboratory fee.

Principles of the forensic analysis of blood and other biological materials. Specific procedures and techniques used in forensic biology and serology. Laboratory fee.

Principles and application of various instrumental methods to the examination of physical evidence, including chromatographic and spectroscopic techniques and mass spectrometry. Laboratory fee.

Examination of Questioned Documents (3)

Theory and principles of handwriting and handprinting, duplicating processes, paper manufacture and fiber analysis; studies of paper and methods of examining questioned documents. Laboratory fee.

Firearms and Toolmark Identification (3)

Methods for identifying firearms, bullet cartridge casings, toolmarks, gunshot residue, obliterated serial numbers, tire marks, and footprints. Laboratory fee.

Principles that govern the analysis of trace evidence, including recovery, transference, interpretation, and comparison. Assessment of evidentiary value, reporting, and court testimony. Laboratory fee.

Photography in the Forensic Sciences (3)

Basic use of forensic photography, including selection and use of equipment, photographs as evidence, close-up work, and common misconceptions. Laboratory fee.

An analytic framework for the interpretation of concepts, goals, strategies, and targeting of international terrorist groups. The evolution of international and U.S. counterterrorism strategies.

Physical Aspects of Forensic Sciences (3)

Survey of forensic physical sciences; fingerprints, firearm and toolmark examinations, document examinations, and examinations of trace evidence, such as glass, soil, paint, hairs, and fibers; crime scene investigations; qualifications and preparation of expert witnesses; operation and functioning of the forensic science laboratory. Laboratory fee.

Biological Aspects of Forensic Sciences (3)

Principles of forensic serology, molecular biology, population biology, wildlife biology, entomology, anthropologic pathology, and toxicology. The role of the forensic laboratory in the identification of human remains; determination of the time, cause, and manner of death. This course cannot be taken for credit toward the forensic molecular biology concentration.

Principles of criminal law and procedure, preparation and presentation of evidence, examination of witnesses, and methods of legal research.

Criminal Law II: Evidence (3)

Procedural rules affecting the collection and use of physical evidence. Emphasis on court opinions defining the rules of search and seizure and admissibility of evidence. Prerequisite: ForS 6221.

Criminal Law III: Moot Court (3)

Students prepare and present direct testimony and are cross-examined by an experienced trial attorney in simulated courtroom setting. Class discussions of problems, techniques. Lectures on discovery, admissibility of scientific evidence, chain of custody, use of notes, etc. Prerequisite: ForS 6221.

Same as BiSc 6228.

Concepts of toxicology, including its historical development and modern applications, drug disposition, mechanisms of toxicity; factors that influence toxicity and toxicity evaluation.

Principles and procedures used in the isolation, identification, and quantitation of drugs of abuse from human samples. Prerequisite: ForS 6202 or permission of instructor.

Theory and principles of classification, synthesis, and structure activity relationships of drugs. Discussion of the complex chemical events that take place between administration of a drug and its action on the user, with emphasis on drugs of abuse.

Chemical, pharmacological, toxicological, and pathological characteristics of commonly abused drugs, including ethanol, barbiturates, narcotics, stimulants, and hallucinogens.

Biological, chemical, and pharmacological principles that underlie forensic toxicology. Prerequisite: ForS 6235 or permission of instructor.

Lectures, student seminars, and projects dealing with topics of current interest in forensic toxicology. Prerequisite: ForS 6236 or permission of instructor.

Examination of glass and soils. Laboratory exercises include refractive index measurements using immersion methods; polarized light observations of minerals; x-ray diffraction analysis of minerals; and classical chemical and physical methods of analysis. Prerequisite: ForS 6202 or permission of instructor. Laboratory fee.

Examination of arson accelerants, textile fibers, plastics, and paints. Laboratory exercises include infrared spectrometry and pyrolysis-gas-liquid chromatography of polymeric materials, as well as classical chemical and physical methods of analysis. Prerequisite: ForS 6238 or permission of instructor. Laboratory fee.

Rowe

Examination of dosage forms of drugs. Laboratory exercises include color spot tests, crystal tests, infrared spectrometry and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Laboratory fee.

Forensic Molecular Biology I (3)

Techniques of molecular biology applied to the collection, examination, analysis, and interpretation of biological evidence.

Forensic Molecular Biology II (3)

Advanced methods of forensic molecular biology. Laboratory examinations and classifications of dried blood and other biological materials through a variety of nuclear and mitochondrial markers. Laboratory fee. Prerequisite: ForS 6241 and permission of instructor.

Crime Scene Investigation for Lab Personnel (3)

A condensed offering of the subject matter of ForS 6251-52. ForS 6250 cannot be taken for credit toward the crime scene investigation concentration. Laboratory fee.

Crime Scene Investigation I-II (3-3)

Examination, analysis, and reconstruction of crime scenes. Principles from biology, chemistry, and physics applied to identification, documentation, preservation, and collection of physical evidence. Laboratory fee.

How an examination of the suspect-victim exchange can lead to an understanding of the offender's motivations. How examination of the forensic evidence can lead not only to the suspect's motives but also to the suspect.

Introduction to the constructs of dynamic psychiatry, psychiatric treatment, and the nomenclature of mental disorders. Consideration of expert testimony, direct examination, and cross-examination in hospitalization and criminal cases.

Investigation of Child Abuse (3)

This course integrates medical, scientific, psychological, sociological and legal information for investigators and professionals involved in the field of child abuse. Special emphasis will be placed on the application of research-supported data to situations involving the murder, abuse and exploitation of children.

Terminology and scientific techniques used in medico-legal investigations, sudden or unexpected deaths, homicides, suicides, accidental deaths, and trauma. Laboratory fee.

Medical, scientific, sociological, and legal methodologies applied to forensic investigations. Aspects of death scene analysis by a medical examiner, including autopsy procedures, unidentified remains, child death investigations, and mass disaster investigations. Prerequisite: ForS 6256 and permission of instructor. Laboratory fee.

A problem-oriented course that focuses on applying the holdings of cases and analysis of statutes to different criminal fact patterns. The course is designed to examine criminal law, criminal procedures, and evidence as it relates to computer crime and the collection/analysis of digital evidence. Open only to students enrolled in off-campus forensic sciences programs.

Negligence and liability, international torts, compensatory and punitive damages, and contract law. The exercise of security functions by private individuals and organizations.

An overview of the factors that shape modern security management: technology, law, ethics and societal changes. The course focuses on risk assessment and the necessity to identify, analyze, and counter threat.

An overview of the risk analysis process: how security threats and vulnerabilities are identified and quantified; how controls and countermeasures are evaluated and prioritized. Principles of loss prevention and the protection of assets.

Issues in Crisis and Disaster Management for Security Professionals (3)

Theoretical and practical considerations that surround a specific crisis or disaster situation. Practical approaches for securing assets vulnerable to these threats. Situational exercises. Open only to students enrolled in off-campus forensic sciences programs or by approval of the program director.

An overview of the types of information assets that need protection from loss. Basic techniques covered include: effective protection of automated information, including backup, disaster management, and intrusion detection.

The ethical dimensions of business issues faced by security professionals: employer/employee relations, loyalty, privacy, the professional use of technology, and ethics in a global environment.

Emergency Planning and Business Continuity (3)

Approaches used to develop effective plans for managing emergency situations and ensuring business continuity when disasters occur.

Industrial Espionage and Corporate Privacy Issues (3)

Countermeasures to protect intellectual capital and physical assets from competitors. Methods used to collect information on businesses and to neutralize threats to corporations and government. The role of the security professional in protecting individual privacy and sensitive and/or proprietary information within organizations. Open to departmental degree candidates only.

Application of principles of psychology in civil and criminal proceedings: determining criminal responsibility, competence to stand trial, and testamentary capacity; jury selection.

Examines the principles of digital forensic analysis applied to forensic investigation and how to use these technologies to identify fraudulent and criminal activities. Open to departmental degree candidates only.

Computer Forensics I: Investigation and Data Gathering (3)

Techniques used to conduct computer crime investigations and gather probative evidence to secure conviction under federal law. The role of the high-technology crime investigator as expert witness. Open only to students enrolled in the department or by approval of the program director. Laboratory fee.

Computer Forensics II: Evidence and Analysis (3)

Threats to, and vulnerabilities of, computer systems and how to minimize them. Open only to students enrolled in the department or by approval of the program director. Laboratory fee.

Incidence Response: Understanding and Identifying Network-Based Attacks (3)

Computer network operations and network-based computer crime. Fraud schemes related to electronic commerce, theft of sensitive computer information, compromise of computer networks, and identity theft. Elements of proof of network-based crime are discussed. Prerequisite: ForS 6264 or equivalent. Laboratory fee.

Advanced Incidence Response: Investigating Network-Based Attacks (3)

Detecting and responding to network- and host-based intruders, integrating intrusion detection systems into network topologies, identifying methods hackers use to break into network systems, analyzing network traffic and detecting attacks, and creating an effective response strategy. Prerequisite: ForS 6279. Laboratory fee.

Principles of accounting: abuse and misuse of accounting procedures; use of accounting in the investigation of commercial crime.

Steganography and Electronic Watermarking (3)

Digital data hiding techniques. Investigation of data hiding and labeling techniques, attacks against steganography and watermarked information; countermeasures to such attacks. Open only to students enrolled in the department or by approval of the program director. Laboratory fee. Prerequisite: ForS 6277, 6278.

High-Technology Crime Investigation Capstone Course (3)

For students in the final semester of the high-technology crime investigation program only. Simulation of a computer forensic investigation: developing an investigation plan, securing the crime scene, analyzing evidence, preparing the case for court, and testifying in a moot court situation. Laboratory fee.

The Investigative Process for Computer Forensics (3)

In-depth examination of the investigative process for computer-related crime in both criminal and civil sectors. Topics include identification and validation of information sources, development and handling of informants, interview and interrogation techniques, and managing the investigative process.

Linux for Computer Forensics (3)

The Linux operating system as a powerful platform for computer forensics examiners, facilitating the collection, processing, and analysis of data presented in criminal or civil proceedings. Laboratory fee. Prerequisite: ForS 6280.

Current issues in research, investigation, and law.

Computer Forensics III: Advanced Techniques (3)

Further examination of methods and techniques used to conduct and report high-technology crime investigations. Open only to students enrolled in the department or by approval of the program director. Laboratory fee. Prerequisite: ForS 6280.

Students in designated forensic sciences degree programs must register for this course in their first semester and again after completion of the required independent research project.

Research on problems approved by the department, under the supervision of an appropriate member of the program faculty. Admission by permission only.

Forensic Sciences Practicum (arr.)

Internship experience in a forensic science laboratory or criminal justice agency, under the supervision of an appropriate member of the program faculty. Students must preregister for this course. Admission by permission only.

Thesis Research (3-3)