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Master’s in COMSEC/CRYPTO and Secure Defence Communications Engineering

Online master's programme of 1,900 hours in COMSEC/CRYPTO and secure defence communications engineering, structured in 12 modules covering the mathematics of cryptography, symmetric, asymmetric and post-quantum cryptography, secure protocols, key management, TRANSEC and TEMPEST, product certification and secure architectures, with an assigned technical tutor.

Duration1900 h
ModeOnline
LanguageEnglish
Start datesSet by the faculty
AwardSEIUM Institute diploma
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Learning outcomes

What you will be able to do

01

Understand the disciplines of communications security.

02

Apply symmetric and asymmetric cryptographic algorithms.

03

Plan the migration to post-quantum cryptography.

04

Design secure communication protocols and architectures.

05

Manage the life cycle of keys and certificates.

06

Evaluate products against Common Criteria and FIPS 140-3.

07

Comply with national and European information security regulations.

Profile

Who it's for

  • Communications security engineers in defence, government or industry.
  • Applied cryptographers who want a systems and certification perspective.
  • Security architects designing classified or high-assurance networks.
  • Security product evaluators working with Common Criteria or FIPS 140-3.
  • Key management officers responsible for cryptographic material.
  • Information security auditors focusing on ENS, NIS2 and ISO/IEC 27001.
  • Engineering or science graduates aiming to enter the defence and security sector.
Standards & tools

What you'll work with

  • FIPS 140-3 (security requirements for cryptographic modules)
  • ISO/IEC 15408 (Common Criteria for IT security evaluation)
  • NIST FIPS 203 (ML-KEM post-quantum key encapsulation)
  • NIST SP 800-57 (key management recommendations)
  • Esquema Nacional de Seguridad, RD 311/2022 (Spanish National Security Framework)
  • Directive (EU) 2022/2555 (NIS2, cybersecurity across the Union)
  • ISO/IEC 27001 (information security management systems)
  • IETF RFC 8446 (TLS 1.3)
  • OpenSSL
  • Wireshark
  • EJBCA
  • ProVerif
  • SoftHSM
Syllabus

12 modules · 1900 h

  1. 1.1. COMSEC disciplines: cryptographic, transmission, emission and physical security
  2. 1.2. Confidentiality, integrity, authenticity and availability
  3. 1.3. Threat models in communications
  4. 1.4. History of military cryptography
  5. 1.5. Organisational framework for information security
  6. 1.6. Information classification: levels and markings
  7. 1.7. National security authorities
  8. 1.8. Industrial security and clearances
  9. 1.9. Professional ethics and confidentiality
  10. 1.10. Case study: threat analysis of a corporate network
  1. 2.1. Modular arithmetic and number theory
  2. 2.2. Groups, rings and finite fields
  3. 2.3. Computational complexity
  4. 2.4. Shannon's information theory
  5. 2.5. Random number generation
  6. 2.6. One-way functions
  7. 2.7. Elliptic curves
  8. 2.8. Lattices and hard problems
  9. 2.9. Formal security proofs
  10. 2.10. Practical exercise: implementing GF(2^8) arithmetic in Python
  1. 3.1. Block ciphers: AES and its structure
  2. 3.2. Modes of operation: CBC, CTR and GCM
  3. 3.3. Stream ciphers: ChaCha20
  4. 3.4. SHA-2 and SHA-3 hash functions
  5. 3.5. MAC codes and HMAC
  6. 3.6. AEAD authenticated encryption
  7. 3.7. Key derivation: HKDF and PBKDF2
  8. 3.8. Differential and linear cryptanalysis
  9. 3.9. Secure implementation against side channels
  10. 3.10. Lab: analysis of modes of operation with OpenSSL
  1. 4.1. RSA: fundamentals and OAEP padding
  2. 4.2. Diffie-Hellman and ECDH
  3. 4.3. ECDSA and EdDSA digital signatures
  4. 4.4. Public key infrastructure
  5. 4.5. X.509 certificates and chains of trust
  6. 4.6. Revocation: CRL and OCSP
  7. 4.7. Hierarchical certification authorities
  8. 4.8. eIDAS qualified electronic signatures
  9. 4.9. Certificate life-cycle management
  10. 4.10. Practical exercise: deploying a PKI with EJBCA
  1. 5.1. The quantum threat: Shor's and Grover's algorithms
  2. 5.2. NIST FIPS 203, 204 and 205 standards
  3. 5.3. Lattice-based ML-KEM
  4. 5.4. ML-DSA and SLH-DSA for signatures
  5. 5.5. Hybrid transition schemes
  6. 5.6. Cryptographic agility
  7. 5.7. Post-quantum migration plans
  8. 5.8. ENISA and CCN recommendations
  9. 5.9. Quantum key distribution
  10. 5.10. Workshop: cryptographic inventory and migration plan
  1. 6.1. TLS 1.3: handshake and cipher suites
  2. 6.2. IPsec: IKEv2, ESP and AH
  3. 6.3. High-assurance network encryptors at a conceptual level
  4. 6.4. MACsec on Ethernet links
  5. 6.5. Wi-Fi security with WPA3
  6. 6.6. End-to-end secure messaging
  7. 6.7. Voice over IP security with SRTP
  8. 6.8. Formal analysis with ProVerif and Tamarin
  9. 6.9. Classic implementation errors
  10. 6.10. Lab: TLS handshake analysis with Wireshark
  1. 7.1. Life cycle of cryptographic keys
  2. 7.2. NIST SP 800-57 recommendations
  3. 7.3. Key generation and distribution
  4. 7.4. HSM modules and their certification
  5. 7.5. Storage and custody
  6. 7.6. Rotation, compromise and revocation
  7. 7.7. Key management in disconnected networks
  8. 7.8. Accounting for cryptographic material
  9. 7.9. Auditing key management
  10. 7.10. Practical exercise: key management with SoftHSM and PKCS#11
  1. 8.1. TRANSEC: protecting the traffic pattern
  2. 8.2. Spread spectrum and frequency hopping
  3. 8.3. Low probability of detection
  4. 8.4. TEMPEST compromising emanations
  5. 8.5. Zoning and SDIP-27 standards
  6. 8.6. Shielding and filtering of equipment
  7. 8.7. Physical security of facilities
  8. 8.8. Laboratory emission measurements
  9. 8.9. Security of portable equipment
  10. 8.10. Case study: TEMPEST zoning of a room
  1. 9.1. Common Criteria ISO/IEC 15408
  2. 9.2. CEM evaluation methodology
  3. 9.3. Protection profiles
  4. 9.4. FIPS 140-3 and CMVP
  5. 9.5. National certification scheme
  6. 9.6. Catalogue of qualified products
  7. 9.7. Evaluation laboratories
  8. 9.8. Evaluation of cryptographic algorithms
  9. 9.9. European EUCC certification
  10. 9.10. Workshop: analysis of a protection profile
  1. 10.1. Classified networks and domain separation
  2. 10.2. Secure exchange gateways
  3. 10.3. Data diodes
  4. 10.4. Zero-trust architecture
  5. 10.5. Security in satellite communications
  6. 10.6. Security in tactical radios
  7. 10.7. Security in the government cloud
  8. 10.8. System accreditation
  9. 10.9. Security incident management
  10. 10.10. Practical exercise: designing an architecture with a data diode
  1. 11.1. Spanish National Security Framework (ENS)
  2. 11.2. NIS2 Directive
  3. 11.3. NATO information security regulations
  4. 11.4. EU Cybersecurity Act
  5. 11.5. Export controls on cryptography
  6. 11.6. Wassenaar Arrangement
  7. 11.7. Information security governance
  8. 11.8. ISO/IEC 27001 and 27002
  9. 11.9. Auditing and compliance
  10. 11.10. Case study: ENS audit of a system
  1. 12.1. Definition of the communications system
  2. 12.2. Threat and requirements analysis
  3. 12.3. Selection of cryptographic mechanisms
  4. 12.4. Design of the secure architecture
  5. 12.5. Key management plan
  6. 12.6. Certification analysis
  7. 12.7. Post-quantum migration assessment
  8. 12.8. Conclusions and recommendations
  9. 12.9. Master's Thesis report
  10. 12.10. Master's Thesis: defence before a panel
Methodology, software & labs

How you'll learn

100% online training on the SEIUM campus, with downloadable material, recorded classes and an assigned technical tutor. There are no fixed timetables: you progress at your own pace within the intake, so you can combine it with your job.

Each module combines theory, guided reading of the original standard and applied exercises. The working software is OpenSSL, Wireshark, EJBCA, ProVerif and SoftHSM, in free, academic or evaluation versions. Testing is studied through real procedures for cryptographic protocol analysis, public key infrastructure deployment and product evaluation against protection profiles. Assessment is continuous by module, plus the final Master's Thesis.

Standards covered: FIPS 140-3, ISO/IEC 15408, NIST FIPS 203, NIST SP 800-57, Esquema Nacional de Seguridad, RD 311/2022, Directive (EU) 2022/2555, ISO/IEC 27001, IETF RFC 8446.

Assigned technical tutor:every module ends with a deliverable that your tutor marks individually.
Standards-based learning:guided reading of FIPS 140-3, ISO/IEC 15408 (Common Criteria) and NIST FIPS 203 applied to real cases, not as a theoretical annex.
Industry software:OpenSSL, Wireshark, EJBCA, ProVerif and SoftHSM, in free, academic or evaluation versions.
Master's Thesis with defence:A secure communications system design with cryptographic mechanisms, key management, certification and post-quantum migration analysis, defended before a panel.
Flexible format:100% online, no fixed timetables, compatible with full-time work.
Capstone project

Build it end to end

Your final project follows the real engineering workflow, step by step, reviewed by your tutor.

Threat and requirements analysis
Define the communications system and analyse its threats and security requirements.
Cryptographic mechanism selection
Select symmetric, asymmetric and post-quantum mechanisms suited to the system.
Secure architecture and protocols
Design the secure architecture and validate its protocols with ProVerif and Wireshark.
Key management and certification
Draw up the key management plan and analyse the certification route.
Master's Thesis
Present the secure system design and its post-quantum migration plan in the thesis, defended before a panel.
Career opportunities

Where this takes you

Communications Security EngineerApplied CryptographerSecurity ArchitectSecurity Product EvaluatorKey Management OfficerInformation Security Auditor
Admissions & scholarships

Requirements

  • University degree in engineering, science or architecture, or equivalent demonstrable professional experience.
  • Internet connection and a computer capable of running the programme software.
  • English sufficient to read technical standards.

Ready to start?

Send your application today. Our admissions team replies within 72 hours with your study plan and funding options.

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FAQ

Frequently asked questions

The programme totals 1,900 hours over 12–14 months. You set your own pace within each intake, and your tutor helps you plan the workload around your job.

You work with OpenSSL, Wireshark, EJBCA, ProVerif and SoftHSM, using free, academic or evaluation versions. Your tutor indicates the free alternative wherever one exists.

A SEIUM Institute diploma, awarded on passing the continuous assessment and the Master's Thesis. It is SEIUM's own qualification, not an official state degree; its recognition depends on the programme completed and the regulations of each country.

Yes. Modules passed in a course or postgraduate diploma in the same area are recognised in the higher programme. Ask about the recognition policy when you enrol.

A university degree in engineering, science or architecture (or equivalent professional experience), a computer able to run the programme software, and English sufficient to read technical standards.

Start dates are set by SEIUM's faculty for each intake. Our admissions team will confirm the next available date when you apply.

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