₹0 for students · Certificate · Beginner

Cybersecurity for Beginners

25 lessons: security fundamentals from the CIA triad to AI security

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24 lessons · ~11 hours · 30-question final exam · pass mark 70%

About the course

What you’ll learn

The foundations every engineer and aspiring security professional needs: core concepts and common threats, risk management, zero trust and shared responsibility, identity and access management, network security, security operations, application and infrastructure security, data security, and securing AI systems. Each lesson has a study guide, the full lesson, and a quiz. Pass every quiz and the final exam to earn a verifiable certificate.

CybersecurityCIA triadRisk managementZero trustIAMNetwork securitySecOpsAppSecData securityAI security

Part of the career tracks: Web Developer, Cybersecurity and Connected Systems

How the certificate works

  1. Read each lesson’s study guide, then the full lesson and any notebooks or exercises.
  2. Pass every lesson quiz with 70% or more.
  3. Pass the final exam: 30 questions in 45 minutes.
  4. Get a certificate with a public verification link, and add it to LinkedIn.

Syllabus

24 lessons in 8 parts

Basic security concepts

1
The CIA Triad and Other Key Concepts
30 min · Confidentiality: only authorised people see information.
2
Common Cybersecurity Threats
35 min · Threat actors: criminals, hacktivists, insiders, nation states; motives vary.
3
Understanding Risk Management
30 min · Risk = likelihood × impact of a threat exploiting a vulnerability.
4
Security Practices and Documentation
25 min · Policies state high-level intent; standards set mandatory specifics.
5
Zero Trust
30 min · Perimeter-based trust fails with cloud, remote work and mobile devices.
6
The Shared Responsibility Model
25 min · Cloud security responsibilities are shared between provider and customer.

Identity and access management

7
Identity and Access Management: Key Concepts
30 min · IAM: identification, authentication, authorisation, auditing.
8
IAM in a Zero Trust Architecture
25 min · Identity is the main control plane in zero trust.
9
IAM Capabilities and Controls
25 min · Directory and identity provider (e.g. Entra ID, Active Directory).

Network security

10
Networking Key Concepts
35 min · IP addresses (IPv4/IPv6), private ranges, NAT and subnets in CIDR notation.
11
Networking in a Zero Trust Architecture
25 min · The network is a defence layer, not a trusted zone.
12
Network Security Capabilities
25 min · Firewalls filter by rules; next-gen firewalls inspect applications and content.

Security operations

13
Security Operations: Key Concepts
30 min · SecOps detects, investigates and responds to threats, usually in a SOC.
14
Security Operations in a Zero Trust Architecture
25 min · Assume breach requires visibility across every layer.
15
Security Operations Capabilities
25 min · SIEM collects logs, runs detections and supports investigation.

Application security

16
Application Security: Key Concepts
30 min · Build security into the whole software lifecycle (shift left, secure by design).
17
Application Security Capabilities
25 min · SAST analyses code; DAST tests running apps; SCA checks dependencies.

Infrastructure security

18
Infrastructure Security: Key Concepts
30 min · Know your assets: inventory and watch for shadow IT.
19
Infrastructure Security Capabilities
25 min · CSPM continuously assesses cloud configuration and provides a secure score.

Data security

20
Data Security: Key Concepts
30 min · Discover and classify data by sensitivity; personal data needs special care.
21
Data Security Capabilities
25 min · Discover sensitive data with patterns and classifiers; apply sensitivity labels.

AI security

22
AI Security: Key Concepts
30 min · Prompt injection: direct (from users) and indirect (hidden in content the AI reads).
23
AI Security Capabilities
25 min · Content safety filters and prompt shields detect harmful content and injection.
24
Responsible AI
25 min · Six principles: fairness, reliability and safety, privacy and security, inclusiveness, transparency, accountability.

Course content is adapted from Microsoft's "Cybersecurity for Beginners" curriculum (https://github.com/microsoft/Security-101), dedicated to the public domain under CC0 1.0. Study guides and quiz questions are written by Vikosha. Certificates are issued by Vikosha and are not issued or endorsed by Microsoft. Licence: CC0 1.0 Universal (public domain dedication). View the original curriculum