Aligning a Serious Game, Secure Programming and CyBOK-Linked Learning Outcomes

Abstract

The increased need for cybersecurity professionals and the necessity to raise the general security awareness of software developers underlines the importance of exploring new approaches for secure programming education. In this paper, we present the Citadel Programming Lab which com-prises a GitLab instance for simulated secure programming tasks and a tower defence game. Whithin the lab we inte-grated guidance linked to CyBOK, a knowledgebase which organises and presents cybersecurity topics, to introduce learners to fundamental security and secure programming concepts. We discuss the design approach of using the game as a motivation to engage with the materials but also as the vehicle for introducing key cybersecurity concepts to assist students in tackling the secure programming tasks embedded in the lab. We present the result of a focus group discussion evaluation of the approach which confirms the pertinence of the CyBOK linkage and the suitability of the serious game to support the lab's progressive introduction to complex cybersecurity topics.