HLS 532 - Critical Infrastructure Protection

Protecting critical infrastructure is one of the most important aspects of homeland security. This course introduces students to America’s infrastructure, the central role it plays in a modern society, and the network theory titled Model-Based Vulnerability Analysis (MBVA) used to protect these national assets. Each infrastructure sector is examined along with the inherent difficulties associated with protecting complex systems and networks. The course presents the fundamentals of risk assessment and teaches students how to arrive at an optimal investment strategy for protecting an asset or asset component. Through the application of theory, principles, and methodology, and by studying case examples, students will be able to construct effective protective strategies for infrastructure in their discipline, region, or state. The course examines the economic impact of major system failure caused by malfunction, disaster, or attack.

Credits: 3