Collaborative Research: SaTC: EDU: Enhancing IoT Software and System Security Education with Student-centered Pedagogy and Next Generation Capture-the-Flag Platform

While the research on securing IoT software and systems has made significant progress in recent years, educational offerings in this area have not kept pace. This lag can be attributed to several factors, which include a lack of wide access to IoT software and the essential infrastructure needed to develop cybersecurity curricula and teaching materials, and a lack of active learning platforms for students such as IoT specific Capture-the-Flag (CTF) systems. Moreover, existing CTF platforms have many pedagogical, functional, and inclusiveness limitations. To mitigate current educational shortcomings, this project will design and host a next generation CTF platform. It will have profound broader impacts, including: (1) enhancing the education and training of the next generation of cybersecurity researchers in topics related to IoT software and systems security; (2) preparing educators and practitioners who will have deep theoretical understanding and practical skills in IoT software and systems security; and (3) involving partner institutions in the project that will utilize the project's outcomes to enhance their cybersecurity curricula. This project will advance the state of knowledge in IoT software and systems security education pedagogy and platforms. The key intellectual merits include the following. (1) Student-centered pedagogy in software and systems security education that will involve students in designing CTF and defensive challenges, while tracking and supporting students' progress by automating the feedback process. (2) Inclusive pedagogy in software and systems security education. (3) Development of the PwnIoT.Academy, a next generation student-centered CTF platform. (4) Development of IoT CTF and defensive challenges for different architectures and software platforms. (5) Collection of extensive data on student learning, which will enable a better understanding of the capabilities of the platform as well as identification of persisting challenges to cybersecurity education and workforce development. This project is supported by the Secure and Trustworthy Cyberspace (SaTC) program, which funds proposals that address cybersecurity and privacy, and in this case cybersecurity education. The SaTC program aligns with the Federal Cybersecurity Research and Development Strategic Plan and the National Privacy Research Strategy to protect and preserve the growing social and economic benefits of cyber systems while ensuring security and privacy. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.