Teaching emerging ddos attacks on firewalls: A case study of the blacknurse attack

Information security is an ever-evolving field that is important in order to keep the confidentiality, integrity and availability of assets. Although defensive measures are constantly being updated, so are attack methods. Computer security specialists need to stay updated with current defense and attack techniques. The objective of this paper is to discuss how teaching methods for computer security can be improved to ensure students and trainees learn the required skills relevant to modern defense and attack measures. This is done through a case study of an emerging Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack known as BlackNurse. The paper introduces the fundamental concepts of the BlackNurse attack and provides hands-on lab activities on attack generation and mitigation in an isolated laboratory environment. The detailed conducted experiments can be considered as a model example of hands-on lab activities for improving student's security skills. This paper aims to offer instructors an easy way to update their courses' contents accordingly and insures updated information security knowledge is delivered to students. Additionally, this paper offers more insights into the understanding of several emerging security vulnerabilities, which would open new research perspectives and topics for both graduate students and researchers. Finally, surveys are conducted to collect instructors and students' feedbacks on using such a paper model to enhance network security education and students learning outcomes achievements.