A three-year retrospective on offering an embedded systems course with a focus on cybersecurity

The fast pace of advancement in fields of computer science and engineering creates enormous opportunities for the use and application of computing devices. The internet of things (IoT) constitutes an area experiencing significant growth. If IoT systems are not configured and used correctly, there is potential for widespread disruption and harm due to cyberattacks. Hence, the new generation of professionals in the field of computer technology needs to be conversant with cybersecurity and the design of protection of computer systems. Cybersecurity is not restricted to a specific domain such as hardware or software and needs to address all aspects of operation of computer systems. Consequently, we have found it beneficial to introduce students to cybersecurity through an embedded systems course. Based on three years of teaching cybersecurity to students in an embedded systems course, we observe that students are excited and motivated to participate in hands-on lab exercises. We have taken special care to orient these lab exercises to breaking news articles about developments related to safety and cybersecurity. We also found it helpful to unify multiple lab exercises around a specific target application domain such as healthcare or retail. Our results over a three-year period demonstrate that it is possible to teach essential cybersecurity concepts within a one-semester course to students who do not have prior exposure to this area. This knowledge needs to be expanded upon in other courses, thereby weaving a thread of cybersecurity through the students' educational experience.

Introduction and Motivation

There is growing concern about the decline of science and engineering capacity in the U.S. [1]. For instance, the number of U.S. full-time graduate students in electrical engineering declined by 17% from 1995 to 2015. Despite billions of dollars spent on high school programs, student performance has stagnated over the past decade [2].