Computer Science 491S

We believe that the fundamental objective of this class is to provide students with a high-quality education while developing in them a sense of ethics and social responsibility. We believe that trust is an integral part of the learning process and that self-discipline is necessary in this pursuit. We also believe that any instance of dishonesty hurts the academic community of security experts we are trying to build at UMass. As an enrolled or auditing student in this course, you are subject to special policies governing your behavior and you are expected to act according to the highest ethical standards. Activities that you undertake while fulfilling the requirements of this class may normally be prohibited under the Acceptable Use Policies of the Ed Lab, the department, and the campus. Note you have a license to complete lab exercises in this class only with the ed lab computers specifically designated for use in this class.

By participating in this course, you have agreed to take part in an honor code. It is the responsibility of every person participating in this course to uphold and maintain at all times the academic standards, integrity, and acceptable use policy of UMass Amherst on and off campus. Additionally, participants cannot use their expertise to assist persons outside this class in violating the acceptable use policy on or off campus. It is also your responsibility to report when others in the class have not upheld this code. Note there are no second chances; i.e., this is your final warning for activities that may result in your appearance in front of the campus judicial board and the Dean of Students.

This class on computer security has additional special regulations (below). We enjoy and attempt to foster an open and collegial class environment. We encourage students to be involved in class and to become engaged in the ideas presented in class and discuss them with others. At the same time, We are vigorously opposed to academic dishonesty because we believe it seriously detracts from the education of honest students. We have the following standard policy on academic honesty, consistent with the UMass official policy for this class:

• It is permissible to discuss a method of solution with other students, or to make use of reference materials in the library or online. If you do this, you will be expected to clearly disclose with whom you discussed the method of solution, or to cite the references used. Failure to do so will be considered cheating or plagiarism. (The use of “method of solution” means a general discussion of technique or algorithm, such as one would reasonably expect to occur standing in front of a whiteboard, and precludes the detailed discussion of code or written assignments.)
• All assignments must be written up individually. Unless otherwise explicitly specified, all written assignments or code that is submitted is to be entirely the students own work. Using any code or copying any assignment from others is strictly prohibited without advance prior permission from the instructor. This includes the use of code others have submitted in the past.
• All students work is their own. Students who do share their work with others are as responsible for academic dishonesty as the student receiving the material. Students are not to show work to other students, in the class or not. Students are responsible for the security of their work and should ensure that printed copies are not left in accessible places, and that file permissions on accounts on shared machines are set to be unreadable to others. If you need assistance protecting your work, please contact us.
• Students who encourage others to cheat or plagiarize, or students who are aware of plagiarism or cheating and do not report it are also participating in academically dishonest behavior.
• Be aware that we may use tools to check for copying among submitted assignments. Additionally, the TA and I will be inspecting all submitted material to ensure honesty. Any case of academic dishonesty will be dealt with a failing grade for the class grade and referral to the office of the Dean.
• Cheating is usually the result of other problems in school. Please come see us anytime if you are unable to keep up with the work for any reason. Everyone here wants to see you succeed and will do everything they can to help you out!