This course is no longer accepting applications for October 2022 entry. The next start date will be October 2023. For an alternative programme, please see Cyber Security and Pen Testing.
Information Security Management is incredibly important for professionals in roles across varied specialisms at technical, regulatory and financial risk from technology. The key teaching areas of the programme are designed to prepare students and professionals for the management of information security in business environments.
We’ll help you develop the expertise that is currently in demand, focusing on developing knowledge and skills for managing information securely in organisations. We do this through security, auditing, financial risk assessment of emerging technology and management of technical teams. The programme provides strategic understanding and decision-making in considering the adoption of blockchain technology.
As information security management becomes more of a requirement across various industries, this programme is ideal for Computer Science undergraduates, as well as undergraduates in other subject areas interested in pursuing a career in information security and related fields.
The course offers a combination of taught modules that are not available at other institutions. The teaching staff have strong links with industry for each module and subject to availability experts are invited to deliver guest lectures. You’ll have the opportunity to attain professional accreditations, but Industry partners may withdraw certifications or introduce charges for current free certifications.
This course will give you a sound theoretical and practical understanding of principles and concepts in information security management across a number of specialist areas (technical, regulatory and financial risk from technology). You’ll learn the relevant theoretical and practical understanding of tools, techniques, procedures and skills necessary to effectively carry out and manage effective digital forensic investigations, especially relating to computer incidents and computer misuse.
You’ll leave with a broad understanding of regulatory compliance, audit and security, and the detection, investigation and prevention of financial crime in corporate environments from emerging technologies. You’ll also have the technical skills necessary to develop and implement strategies for the introduction and management of information systems and knowledge management programmes.
You’ll also learn about blockchain strategy, so you can assess benefits for the organisation and the viability in adopting this technology.
As well as learning to apply relevant tools and techniques to carry out a digital forensic investigation, you’ll learn to investigate, collect and analyse and present relevant digital evidence from digital devices including online data stores.
You’ll be able to advise on blockchain strategy for organisations, as well as managing compliance in corporate environments and implementing tools and techniques for detecting, investigating and preventing financial crime from emerging technologies.
You’ll apply relevant information security management, cyber security and audit and security principles by implementing effective solutions as an individual or in cooperation with others. You’ll also demonstrate a critical understanding of, and the ability to deploy effectively, a wide range of learning methods resources and technologies, including, but not limited to, Information and Communication Technologies.
You’ll learn how to perform effectively as a member of student teams in complex and diverse scenarios and select and use a variety of modes of discourse for effective communication according to the needs of the intended audience.
The module aims to give you a sound understanding of the relationship between digital investigations and digital technologies. It will provide in-depth knowledge of evidence management and the consequences of mismanagement in investigations. This practical module will equip you with investigatory skills necessary to process digital media using both open source and commercial industry digital forensic tools. You’ll learn about the planning of investigations, technology management strategies and how your actions could affect evidential continuity. Equal value is placed on the importance on documentation, processes and validity along with technical ability to recover and find evidential artefacts.
The module aims to give you a broad understanding financial crime risks from emerging technologies for the regulated financial sector (e.g., fraud, electronic crime, money laundering, sanctions and terrorist financing). It provides practical knowledge of carrying out risk assessments for emerging technology in financial products and services. You’ll gain an understanding of the nature, purpose and legal requirement of adhering to regulation in the area of financial services and how compliance is managed in practice. You’ll gain knowledge and skills on developing strategies where investigation techniques and practices.
The aim of this module is to consider the way in which compliance and auditing procedures can be used in digital forensics to maintain underlying standards of information security and to identify errors and anomalies. Digital Forensics involves the identification, collection, examination, and analysis, of data. Regulations and standards are used to assist in the maintenance of computer security and provide a structured approach to the management of data. Compliance with relevant standards and regulation can be used to identify potential data security risks and to collect information on situations where potential risk have led to data loss. This module focuses on the use and applicability of regulation and standards to manage data security process and procedures. It will also identify and address the limits of compliance and auditing procedures.
The module explores how blockchain technologies can be incorporated into corporate environments. This enables future decision makers to assess the viability of your application by acquiring the skills to develop strategic plans for different types of organisations based on your market sector, product and service. It provides knowledge on blockchain technology, innovation and opportunities, in this rapidly evolving domain. Furthermore, future applications of blockchain technology into new domains are considered with emerging applications.
This focuses on both technical and managerial aspects of information security management and equips you with knowledge and skills required by IT security professionals worldwide. The module will take an integrated approach to security management through the use of the security frameworks, policies and models guided by the international regulatory standards.
The module focuses on aspects of cyber and information security and equips you with knowledge and skills required by IT security professionals worldwide. The module will take an integrated approach to security and will analyse vulnerabilities of organisations, threats they face and study various cryptographic and other protection mechanisms in order to safeguard them from attacks.
Data management systems are now the central software of most industrial data processing applications and the driving force behind Business Information Technology and E-Commerce. This module covers the concepts and theories of managing industrial data such as implementation of large volume data storage, preserving data quality, data preparation for dimensional modelling. The module also explores technologies and algorithms for handling a large amount of data, i.e., data cleansing, data segmentation and data transformation, to discover knowledge from data warehouse.
This module presents state of the art technologies that support decision-making and provide problem solving capabilities to managers in industry. The module is designed to give an introduction into the theory of decision-making and management and some of the most widely used contemporary methods enabling modern decision support systems. In particular, the module explores theories in the domain of management decision making, for example, linear models, utility and decision-making under uncertainty. The module provides you with an opportunity to examine how data management techniques can be applied in business information systems to enhance the decision-making power of managers. The module also equips you with sufficient understanding of the current theory of decision making and its applications that address modern and future business needs.
Designed to give you an opportunity to demonstrate your ability to undertake work that is independent - shaped largely by one’s own decisions and preferences; complete - accomplished from conception to delivery, via all stages in between; technically competent - employing techniques and exploiting knowledge gained during earlier parts of the programme; professionally and ethically compliant; supervised - working under the guidance but not instruction of a member of academic staff; academically sound - taking critical account of current knowledge and methods in the chosen specialist area.
You can find more information about this course in the programme specification. Module and programme information is indicative and may be subject to change.
We are regularly reviewing and updating our programmes to ensure you have the best learning experience. We are taking what we have learnt during the pandemic and enhancing our teaching methods with new and innovative ways of learning.
We aim to model a wide range of teaching strategies and approaches on the course which you can adapt to your own setting.
The programme is taught in a mixture of 3-hour workshops (combining lectures and lab sessions). The workshops allow for more time to be spent on practical elements of the course.
You will be assessed through coursework for each module and a research project. You will be assessed through a variety of methods:
You will receive regular feedback on your work throughout the course, including on your assessed work.
We are regularly reviewing and updating our programmes to ensure you have the best learning experience. We are taking what we have learnt during the pandemic and enhancing our teaching methods with new and innovative ways of learning.
We are currently reviewing our approach to teaching and learning for 2023 entry and beyond. We've learned a lot about how to give you a quality education - we aim to combine the best of our pre-pandemic teaching and learning with access to online learning and digital resources which put you more in charge of when and how you study. We will keep you updated on this throughout the application process.
Your timetable will be built around on campus sessions using our professional facilities, with online sessions for some activities where we know being virtual will add value. We’ll use technology to enhance all of your learning and give you access to online resources to use in your own time.
The table below gives you an idea of what learning looks like across a typical week. Some weeks are different due to how we schedule classes and arrange on campus sessions.
This information is likely to change slightly for 2023 entry as our plans evolve. You'll receive full information on your teaching before you start your course.
Learning structure: typical hourly breakdown in 2021/22 | ||
Live in-person on campus learning | Contact hours per week, per level: | 12 hours |
Live online learning | Average hours per week, per level: | 4 hours |
This information is likely to change slightly for 2023 entry as our plans evolve. You'll receive full information on your teaching before you start your course.
Definitions of terms
Support
You have a strong support network available to you to make sure you develop all the necessary academic skills you need to do well on your course.
Our support services will be delivered online and on campus and you have access to a range of different resources so you can get the help you need, whether you’re studying at home or have the opportunity to come to campus.
You have access to one to one and group sessions for personal learning and academic support from our library and IT teams, and our network of learning experts. Our teams will also be here to offer financial advice, and personal wellbeing, mental health and disability support.
The programme has been designed with an emphasis on currency and the relevance to future employment.
The majority of our graduates are employed in IT posts relevant to their subject in varied specialisms, including:
Sukhvinder Hara is an experienced digital forensic investigator from a law enforcement background. Sukhvinder is a member of various groups and bodies (Aspects of Law and Ethics Relating to Technology (ALERT), Computer Science Ethics Committee, Themis Financial Crime Agency and ANEC representative on CEN-CLC/JTC Blockchain and Distributed Ledger Technologies.
Dr Carlisle George is a lawyer (Barrister) and computer scientist.
Expertise: Information Technology Law; Privacy and Data Protection; Legal Aspects of Digital Forensics; Legal aspects of eHealth/mHealth/Health Informatics; Legal Aspects of Data Science and AI (Machine Learning); Internet Law; eCommerce Law; Corporate Compliance and Financial Crime Prevention.
Gill Whitney is an acknowledged expert in the field of Digital Systems with particular knowledge of the standardisation, legislation, training and technical factors needed to support the creation of useable, useful and fun technology. She is Head of the Design for All Research Group which carries out multidisciplinary research work in the area of digital and social inclusion.
We’ll carefully manage any future changes to courses, or the support and other services available to you, if these are necessary because of things like changes to government health and safety advice, or any changes to the law.
Any decisions will be taken in line with both external advice and the University’s Regulations which include information on this.
Our priority will always be to maintain academic standards and quality so that your learning outcomes are not affected by any adjustments that we may have to make.
At all times we’ll aim to keep you well informed of how we may need to respond to changing circumstances, and about support that we’ll provide to you.
Start: September 2023, EU/INT induction: September 2023
Duration: 1 year full-time, 2 years part-time
Code: PGF490
Start: , October 2023
Duration: 1 year full-time, 2 years part-time
Code: PGI108
Start: October 2023
Duration: 1 year full-time, 2 years part-time
Code: PGG404
