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Texas Foundations of Cybersecurity (NEW) Framework

Standards

Standard Description
127.792.d.1.a identify and demonstrate employable work behaviors such as regular attendance, punctuality, maintenance of a professional work environment, and effective written and verbal communication Lessons
127.792.d.1.b identify and demonstrate positive personal qualities such as authenticity, resilience, initiative, and a willingness to learn new knowledge and skills Lessons
127.792.d.1.c solve problems and think critically Lessons
127.792.d.1.d demonstrate leadership skills and function effectively as a team member Lessons
127.792.d.1.e demonstrate an understanding of ethical and legal responsibilities and ramifications in relation to the field of cybersecurity Lessons
127.792.d.2.a identify job and internship opportunities and accompanying job duties and tasks Lessons
127.792.d.2.b research careers in cybersecurity and information security and develop professional profiles that match education and job skills required for obtaining a job in both the public and private sectors Lessons
127.792.d.2.c identify and discuss certifications for cybersecurity-related careers Lessons
127.792.d.2.d explain the different types of services and roles found within a cybersecurity functional area such as a security operations center (SOC) Lessons
127.792.d.3.a demonstrate and advocate for ethical and legal behaviors both online and offline among peers, family, community, and employers Lessons
127.792.d.3.b investigate and analyze local, state, national, and international cybersecurity laws such as the USA PATRIOT Act of 2001, General Data Protection Regulation, Digital Millennium Copyright Act, Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, and Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) Lessons
127.792.d.3.c investigate and analyze noteworthy incidents or events regarding cybersecurity Lessons
127.792.d.3.d communicate an understanding of ethical and legal behavior when presented with various scenarios related to cybersecurity activities Lessons
127.792.d.3.e define and identify tactics used in an incident such as social engineering, malware, denial of service, spoofing, and data vandalism Lessons
127.792.d.3.f identify and use appropriate methods for citing sources Lessons
127.792.d.4.a identify motivations and perspectives for hacking Lessons
127.792.d.4.b distinguish between types of threat actors such as hacktivists, criminals, state-sponsored actors, and foreign governments Lessons
127.792.d.4.c identify and describe the impact of cyberattacks on the global community, society, and individuals Lessons
127.792.d.4.d differentiate between industry terminology for types of hackers such as black hats, white hats, and gray hats Lessons
127.792.d.4.e determine and describe possible outcomes and legal ramifications of ethical versus malicious hacking practices Lessons
127.792.d.5.a define cyberterrorism, state-sponsored cyberterrorism, and hacktivism Lessons
127.792.d.5.b compare and contrast physical terrorism and cyberterrorism, including domestic and foreign actors Lessons
127.792.d.5.c define and explain intelligence gathering Lessons
127.792.d.5.d explain the role of cyber defense in protecting national interests and corporations Lessons
127.792.d.5.e explain the role of cyber defense in society and the global economy Lessons
127.792.d.5.f explain the importance of protecting public infrastructures such as electrical power grids, water systems, pipelines, transportation, and power generation facilities from cyberterrorism Lessons
127.792.d.6.a identify and understand the nature and value of privacy Lessons
127.792.d.6.b analyze the positive and negative implications of a digital footprint and the maintenance and monitoring of an online presence Lessons
127.792.d.6.c discuss the role and impact of technology on privacy Lessons
127.792.d.6.d identify the signs, emotional effects, and legal consequences of cyberbullying and cyberstalking Lessons
127.792.d.6.e identify and discuss effective ways to deter and report cyberbullying Lessons
127.792.d.7.a define personally identifiable information (PII) Lessons
127.792.d.7.b evaluate the risks and benefits of sharing PII Lessons
127.792.d.7.c describe the impact of granting applications unnecessary permissions such as mobile devices accessing camera and contacts Lessons
127.792.d.7.d describe the risks of granting third parties access to personal and proprietary data on social media and systems Lessons
127.792.d.7.e describe the risks involved with accepting Terms of Service (ToS) or End User License Agreements (EULA) without a basic understanding of the terms or agreements Lessons
127.792.d.8.a define cybersecurity and information security Lessons
127.792.d.8.b identify basic risk management and risk assessment principles related to cybersecurity threats and vulnerabilities, including the Zero Trust model Lessons
127.792.d.8.c explain the fundamental concepts of confidentiality, integrity, and availability (CIA triad) Lessons
127.792.d.8.d describe the trade-offs between convenience and security Lessons
127.792.d.8.e identify and analyze cybersecurity breaches and incident responses Lessons
127.792.d.8.f identify and analyze security challenges in domains such as physical, network, cloud, and web Lessons
127.792.d.8.g define and discuss challenges faced by cybersecurity professionals such as internal and external threats Lessons
127.792.d.8.h identify indicators of compromise such as common risks, warning signs, and alerts of compromised systems Lessons
127.792.d.8.i explore and discuss the vulnerabilities of network-connected devices such as Internet of Things (IoT) Lessons
127.792.d.8.j use appropriate cybersecurity terminology Lessons
127.792.d.8.k explain the concept of penetration testing, including tools and techniques Lessons
127.792.d.8.l explore and identify common industry frameworks such as MITRE ATT&CK, MITRE Engage , and Cyber Kill Chain, and the Diamond Model Lessons
127.792.d.9.a define malware, including spyware, ransomware, viruses, and rootkits Lessons
127.792.d.9.b identify the transmission and function of malware such as trojan horses, worms, and viruses Lessons
127.792.d.9.c discuss the impact of malware and the model of "as a service" Lessons
127.792.d.9.d explain the role of reverse engineering for the detection of malware and viruses Lessons
127.792.d.9.e describe free and commercial antivirus and anti-malware software also known as Endpoint Detection and Response software Lessons
127.792.d.10.a define system hardening Lessons
127.792.d.10.b use basic system administration privileges Lessons
127.792.d.10.c explain the importance of patching operating systems Lessons
127.792.d.10.d explain the importance of software updates Lessons
127.792.d.10.e describe standard practices to configure system services Lessons
127.792.d.10.f explain the importance of backup files Lessons
127.792.d.10.g research and explain standard practices for securing computers, networks, and operating systems, including the concept of least privilege Lessons
127.792.d.10.h identify vulnerabilities caused by a lack of cybersecurity awareness and training such as weaknesses posed by individuals within an organization Lessons
127.792.d.11.a identify basic network devices, including routers and switches Lessons
127.792.d.11.b define network addressing Lessons
127.792.d.11.c analyze incoming and outgoing rules for traffic passing through a firewall Lessons
127.792.d.11.d identify well known ports by number and service provided, including port 22 (Secure Shell Protocol/ssh), port 80 (Hypertext Transfer Protocol/http), and port 443 (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure/https) Lessons
127.792.d.11.e identify commonly exploited ports and services, including ports 20 and 21 (File Transfer Protocol/ftp), port 23 (telnet protocol), and port 3389 (Remote Desktop Protocol/rdp) Lessons
127.792.d.11.f identify common tools for monitoring ports and network traffic Lessons
127.792.d.12.a define what constitutes a secure password Lessons
127.792.d.12.b create a secure password policy, including length, complexity, account lockout, and rotation Lessons
127.792.d.12.c identify methods of password cracking such as brute force and dictionary attacks Lessons
127.792.d.12.d examine and configure security options to allow and restrict access based on user roles Lessons
127.792.d.13.a identify different types of user accounts and groups on an operating system Lessons
127.792.d.13.b explain the fundamental concepts and standard practices related to access control, including authentication, authorization, and auditing Lessons
127.792.d.13.c compare methods for single- and multi-factor authentication such as passwords, biometrics, personal identification numbers (PINs), secure tokens, and other passwordless authentication methods Lessons
127.792.d.13.d define and explain the purpose and benefits of an air-gapped computer Lessons
127.792.d.13.e explain how hashes and checksums may be used to validate the integrity of transferred data Lessons
127.792.d.14.a explain the importance of digital forensics to organizations, private citizens, and the public sector Lessons
127.792.d.14.b identify the role of chain of custody in digital forensics; Lessons
127.792.d.14.c explain the four steps of the forensics process, including collection, examination, analysis, and reporting Lessons
127.792.d.14.d identify when a digital forensics investigation is necessary Lessons
127.792.d.14.e identify information that can be recovered from digital forensics investigations such as metadata and event logs Lessons
127.792.d.14.f analyze the purpose of event logs and identify suspicious activity Lessons
127.792.d.15.a explain the purpose of cryptography and encrypting data; Lessons
127.792.d.15.b research historical uses of cryptography Lessons
127.792.d.15.c review and explain simple cryptography methods such as shift cipher and substitution cipher Lessons
127.792.d.15.d define and explain public key encryption Lessons
127.792.d.15.e compare and contrast symmetric and asymmetric encryption Lessons
127.792.d.16.a explain how computer vulnerabilities leave systems open to cyberattacks Lessons
127.792.d.16.b explain how users are the most common vehicle for compromising a system at the application level Lessons
127.792.d.16.c define and describe vulnerability, payload, exploit, port scanning, and packet sniffing Lessons
127.792.d.16.d identify internal threats to systems such as logic bombs and insider threats Lessons
127.792.d.16.e define and describe cyberattacks, including man-in-the-middle, distributed denial of service, spoofing, and back-door attacks Lessons
127.792.d.16.f differentiate types of social engineering techniques such as phishing; web links in email, instant messaging, social media, and other online communication with malicious links; shoulder surfing; and dumpster diving Lessons
127.792.d.16.g identify various types of application-specific attacks such as cross-site scripting and injection attacks Lessons
127.792.d.17.a compare vulnerabilities associated with connecting devices to public and private networks Lessons
127.792.d.17.b explain device vulnerabilities and security solutions on networks such as supply chain security and counterfeit products Lessons
127.792.d.17.c compare and contrast protocols such as HTTP versus HTTPS Lessons
127.792.d.17.d debate the broadcasting or hiding of a wireless service set identifier (SSID) Lessons
127.792.d.17.e research and discuss threats such as mandatory access control (MAC) spoofing and packet sniffing Lessons
127.792.d.18.a define application security Lessons
127.792.d.18.b identify methods of application security such as secure development policies and practices Lessons
127.792.d.18.c explain the purpose and function of vulnerability scanners Lessons
127.792.d.18.d explain how coding errors may create system vulnerabilities such as buffer overflows and lack of input validation Lessons
127.792.d.18.e analyze the risks of distributing insecure programs Lessons
127.792.d.19.a define commonly used risk assessment terms, including risk, asset, and inventory Lessons
127.792.d.19.b identify risk management strategies, including acceptance, avoidance, transference, and mitigation Lessons
127.792.d.19.c compare and contrast risks based on an industry accepted rubric or metric such as Risk Assessment Matrix Lessons