Cyber Security / Applied Cryptography / Secure Systems Design
2,500 words
Secure Property Contract Exchange: Cryptographic Protocol Design, Threat Modelling and Post-Quantum Readiness
This Applied Theory of Cyber Security and Secure Design coursework places students in the role of a cyber security consultant engaged by Hackit & Run LLP, a legal firm specialising in UK and international property transactions. The firm wishes to implement a secure digital system for handling, exchanging and legally signing property contracts. Students must design and evaluate a secure communication protocol supporting interactions between the buyer’s solicitor, the seller’s solicitor and the buyer while addressing both first-time communications and previously established secure relationships. 11b17febb9eeb4570f76f6ca95a831a… Section A – Cryptographic Protocol Design, worth 45%, requires a complete secure communication protocol. Students must explain how trust is initially established, how later communications can be simplified without weakening confidentiality, integrity or availability, and how the buyer can digitally sign a contract in a manner enforceable under UK law. The design must justify specific cryptographic algorithms for functions such as key exchange, bulk encryption, digital signatures and hashing. The protocol must be presented through both a sequence diagram showing message flows and cryptographic operations and pseudocode explaining the key algorithmic stages. 11b17febb9eeb4570f76f6ca95a831a… Section B – Threat Modelling, worth 20%, requires a focused analysis using the STRIDE methodology. Students identify three realistic threats from different STRIDE categories and analyse the attack vector, asset at risk and potential effect on the legal transaction. Each threat must then be connected back to specific protocol defences, with residual risks acknowledged where controls cannot provide complete mitigation. The guidance encourages consideration of issues such as social engineering, insider threats, key-management failures and availability risks in addition to purely cryptographic attacks. 11b17febb9eeb4570f76f6ca95a831a… Section C – Security Evaluation Against Standards, worth 15%, requires students to evaluate the proposed system against a recognised cybersecurity standard or framework. Options include ISO/IEC 27001:2022, Common Criteria (ISO/IEC 15408) and the OWASP Application Security Verification Standard. Students select three or four directly relevant controls or requirements, assess whether the proposed design satisfies them, identify gaps and recommend specific improvements. 11b17febb9eeb4570f76f6ca95a831a… Section D – Post-Quantum Readiness and Critical Reflection, worth 15%, examines how a future quantum-capable adversary could affect the protocol. Students identify vulnerable cryptographic components, discuss the NIST Post-Quantum Cryptography standardisation programme, and examine replacement algorithms such as ML-KEM for key establishment and ML-DSA for digital signatures. They must also evaluate a hybrid migration strategy combining classical and post-quantum algorithms, considering performance overhead, backward compatibility and the legal admissibility of post-quantum digital signatures. 11b17febb9eeb4570f76f6ca95a831a… The remaining 5% evaluates professional report quality, logical structure, technical language, integration of diagrams and consistent CUHarvard referencing. Higher-quality work is expected to demonstrate a sophisticated trust model, clear traceability between threats and controls, precise standards mapping, practical security recommendations and well-evidenced analysis of post-quantum migration. 11b17febb9eeb4570f76f6ca95a831a… Important for the public Reference Library: the brief states that the assessment document is intended only for Coventry University Group students and must not be passed to third parties or posted on any website. Therefore, publish only an original high-level description such as the overview above; do not upload or reproduce the original assignment brief publicly. 11b17febb9eeb4570f76f6ca95a831a…
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Cryptography
2,500 words
Cryptography – Secure Land Transaction Contract Exchange Protocol
This 2,500-word Cryptography coursework for Coventry University examines the design of a secure communication protocol for the remote exchange and signing of legal property transaction contracts. The assignment is based on a scenario involving Hackit & Run LLP (H&R), a firm of solicitors specialising in property transactions in the UK and overseas. Because property transactions are increasingly conducted through remote communications, H&R intends to establish a comprehensive system for secure document handling, exchange and digital signing that complies with legal requirements and remains enforceable under UK law. The scenario concerns a land transaction between Mrs. Harvey, the buyer, and Mr L.M. Facey, the seller. Students must devise a communication protocol involving three parties: H&R, the seller’s solicitor and Mrs. Harvey. H&R communicates with the seller through the seller’s solicitor rather than directly with the seller. The seller’s solicitor sends the contract to H&R, H&R forwards it to Mrs. Harvey, Mrs. Harvey digitally signs the contract and returns it to H&R, and H&R then sends the signed contract to the seller’s solicitor. The assignment requires students to consider two communication scenarios between H&R and the seller’s solicitor: a situation where the two parties have previously communicated securely and a situation where they are communicating securely for the first time. Students must identify suitable encryption algorithms for the different stages of the contract exchange protocol and justify their algorithm choices. The work should demonstrate an understanding of appropriate cryptographic approaches for maintaining confidentiality, integrity and availability during secure communication. Students must clearly illustrate their proposed protocol using suitable graphics and pseudocode. A full functioning implementation using a programming language may be provided as a higher-level approach. The report must identify the strengths and limitations of the proposed protocol and discuss the findings. This requires students to connect cryptographic theory with a practical security protocol designed for a real-world legal transaction. The coursework assesses knowledge of modern cryptography, including symmetric-key cryptography, key exchange, asymmetric cryptography, digital signatures, digital certificates and authentication. Students are also expected to model, test and assess the suitability of cryptographic protocols and algorithms for different practical requirements and critically evaluate current research and technological developments in cryptography and its applications. The final submission is a written report of 2,500 words, excluding appendices and tables, with properly formatted references. The assignment is categorised as a report and is a normal coursework attempt. The brief does not specify a particular referencing style or academic level, so these fields should not be guessed when entering the assignment into the Reference Library.
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Cryptography
2,500 words
Cryptography – Secure Contract Exchange Protocol
This 2,500-word Cryptography assignment for Coventry University examines the design of a secure communication protocol for the digital exchange and signing of property contracts. The scenario is based on Lauren Order & Cashgrab LLP (LO&C), a UK and overseas property law firm seeking to establish a comprehensive document handling, exchange and signing system that supports remote property transactions while remaining consistent with legal requirements and enforceable under UK law. The assignment requires students to consider the exchange of contracts using the extended CIA model and to devise a secure communication protocol involving three parties: LO&C, the buyer's solicitor Hackit & Run (H&R), and the seller. The scenario specifies that LO&C communicates with the buyer through H&R, that LO&C and the seller collaborate on initial contract drafts, and that LO&C prepares and sends the final contract to the seller for approval and digital signing before forwarding the signed contract to H&R for the buyer's signature. LO&C and H&R have an existing secure communication relationship. A central requirement is the identification and justification of suitable encryption algorithms for the different stages of the contract exchange protocol. Students may select algorithms covered in lectures or undertake additional research to identify alternative algorithms. The report must explain why particular algorithms are appropriate at different stages of the protocol and demonstrate how the selected cryptographic techniques address the practical security requirements of the scenario. The protocol must be clearly illustrated using suitable graphics and pseudocode, with functioning code being an optional higher-level approach. Students are required to identify the strengths and limitations of their proposed protocol and discuss their findings. The assignment therefore combines theoretical knowledge of modern cryptography with practical protocol design and evaluation. Generative AI may be used to create suitable code where permitted, but students must demonstrate their understanding of the code. The assessed learning outcomes cover modern cryptographic concepts and techniques, including symmetric-key cryptography, key exchange, asymmetric cryptography, digital signatures, digital certificates and authentication. Students are also expected to model, test and assess the suitability of cryptographic protocols and algorithms for practical requirements and critically evaluate current research and technological developments in cryptography and its applications.
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