OWASP Academy Portal Project/Requirements

Vision

The Academy Portal will deliver high high valuable material that can be used in Academies to help teaching application security related subjects. Should have tools useful to help teachers/trainer deliver the contents and motivate the students to learn application security.

Requirements

Site static contents

The tool should support the creation and management of content pages. At least the following pages should be created:

• Homepage: Should be a teaser for the portal contents, with call for actions for both Teachers and Students
• About: Explanation about the Portal, the vision and the relation with OWASP.
• How to Use: Simple instructions / suggestions on how to use the portal and portal contents
• How to contribute: Simple instructions / suggestions on how to contribute
• FAQ: Simple Q&A around portal use and features.
• Disclaimer: Like the one in the OWASP wiki?
• ... TBD ...

Registration

The users should be able to create accounts in the portal that will enable the users to use some features like the exam tool.

TBD: Type of users / Privacy

Content Availability

As a general rule, contents should be available to every one.

Specific tools a/or features can request registration or some form of user validation to be used/accessed.

TBD: Witch tools should need registering.

Learning Blocks

This are in fact course materials that could be used to teach classes / subjects in classes. Each block will have:

• Metadata: A standard set of proprieties that will help describe the content of a course
  • Subject:
  • Categories:
  • Keywords:
  • Description:
  • Learning Outcomes:
  • Requirements/Pre-req to understand:
  • Theatrical/Practical
  • Incl. Hands-on labs
  • Should be self-contained
  • Should handle a single subject
  • Target audience:
  • Ability level: 100|200|300|400
  • Rough guide to presentation time:
  • Effort
• Training Materials: A set of files that can be used to deliver the block and can be (one or more of the following)
  • Teacher Presentation Slides
  • Student Handouts
  • Video
  • Lab Files
• Extra Metadata and Materials:
  • Lab links:
  • Outside links:
  • Text books:
• Non funtional Requirements regarding the blocks
  • Should be self-contained
  • Should handle a single subject
  • Corresponding OWASP effort

Also, each block will allow users to comment on the block to help share specific tips around this block.

Forums

The portal should provide a forum that will allow teachers and/or students to collaborate around the Academy portal Concept and tools.

TBD:

• Will it have a moderator? Who will moderate the forum?
• Different forum to students and teacher?

Tool: Questions

This tool will provide a simple interface for teacher to set a question pool (like and exam) that can be used to test (or in a wide context: challenge) the students.

This tool will work in the following way (Generic description):

• A teacher creates an exam as a pool of questions
• The exam is sent to the students
• The student answers the exam
• The teacher will have a dashboard where it can see who have answered as well as the answer.

Tool: Laboratories

This tool will provide a simple interface for teacher to set a laboratory that can be used to test (or in a wide context: challenge) the students.

This tool will work in the following way (Generic description):

• A teacher creates an assignment
• The assignment is sent to the students
• The student do the lab
• The teacher will have a score board.

Glossary

• TBD: To be Defined
• Academy: A place here application security content are delivered, can be for example a school, university, training center, etc.
• Learning Block: A unit of information useful to deliver a given subject.