Entrepreneurship Projects | Engineering Open House

MEMBERS: Chance Greenhoff; Hai Yen Nguyen; Hayden Love; Elijah Brunt; Tobin Hushower

ADVISOR: Dr. Joe Jabara

To create a device which can monitor network traffic, ie packet sniff, networks from a concealed location. This allows cybersecurity analysts to better perform their job as others in excersises will not be able to screen peak and thus patch vulnerabilities before their exploited. Our microcomputer has a 2 buisness day lifespan on mobile battery pack, a full desktop interface and makes no noise. Additionally, it can be hidden in bags, in drawers, or use our example fake book safe.

https://youtu.be/RCwL9EQapKM?si=D9g316I1hFEhe0Bk

Escape Room Style Cybersecurity Training Tool

MEMBERS: Logan Hutchens; Carlos Rangel, Thomas Nguyen; Landon Winsky; Alex Pollnow; Samantha Cranston

ADVISOR: Dr. Joe Jabara

In today’s information age, cybercrime is more rampant than ever, yet companies often find their employees lacking the necessary skills to defend against it. This is due to ineffective and outdated cybersecurity training – an issue that plagues IT departments across the world. A new style of training, one that is more engaging, is needed to ensure employees can protect themselves and their organizations against the threats of today. Our proposed solution works to solve this demand. Our new training software contains learning segments comprised of three main components: learning content, simulation activity, and real-world example. Through presenting these components in a gamified format, the software encourages the user to remain actively engaged with the training content. Gamification has been proven to increase user engagement by up to 48%. With an increase in user engagement, it’s believed increased retention of the learning material will follow. Additionally, the software will continually reinforce the importance of the content. Development of the software is currently in progress. Once completed, tests will be done comparing the software to traditional training programs to determine if the solution is an improvement in terms of engagement and retention and, if so, by what percentage. These tests will involve users partaking in both and completing surveys and tests based on the content and their experience with the training format. The expectation is that it will be enough of an improvement to warrant IT departments to switch to our solution.

https://youtu.be/BhDSzK_Bf98

Carpacity

MEMBERS: Peter Saw; Adam Wilson; Mark Stacey, Cybersecurity; Trevor Herdman; Haden Williams

ADVISOR: Dr. Caskel Stallard; Dr. Gary Brooking

The Carpacity project aims to tackle the common issue of finding parking on campus, which affects both students and faculty, especially during peak hours. This challenge often leads to traffic congestion and frustration due to high demand for parking spaces. Carpacity employs open-source software to monitor and analyze traffic within parking lots, using camera feeds to track the entrance and exits. This data helps determine real-time parking lot occupancy, enabling students to find parking more efficiently and allowing Parking Services to obtain valuable metrics for decision-making and resource allocation. Through heatmapping, the system can indicate the popularity of specific lots, aiding in better management of parking resources. Currently, Carpacity successfully monitors traffic flows and calculates the real-time capacity of parking lots, demonstrating the potential of image detection technology to enhance the parking search process and improve overall campus life.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8zrcK7_uDE

RANSOM EDU

MEMBERS: Elizabeth Wilson; Ke'Auna Edmondson; Emily Evans; Kira Hall

ADVISOR: Dr. Joe Jabara

Ransom Edu offers a specialized solution for higher education institutions dealing with

ransomware threats. Traditional cybersecurity training programs provide insufficient preparation

for staff and administrators facing the multifaceted impacts of these incidents. Motivated by the

surge in ransomware incidents in 2023, Ransom Edu aims to address the critical need for

effective incident response in higher education.

Ransom Edu's initiative focuses on developing a specialized tabletop exercise that simulates

realistic scenarios specific to the operational challenges of higher education institutions. These

challenges include protecting sensitive data while maintaining student services and campus

safety. The overall approach includes three distinct design concepts: an In-Person D&D Styled

Tabletop Exercise, a Backdoors & Breaches Card Game Expansion Pack, and a

Software-Based Simulated Ransomware Attack. The project's unique value lies in its scalability,

collaboration among diverse teams, and targeted approach to addressing the sector's nuanced

challenges.

Ransom Edu fills a critical need for incident response preparedness in higher education. The

project's tailored approach offers a valuable resource for institutions seeking to enhance their

cybersecurity resilience. Future works involve refining the exercise through integration of

software components and implementing institution accountability checkpoints. Ultimately,

Ransom Edu aims to fortify incident response capabilities and cybersecurity resilience within the

higher education sector.

https://youtu.be/CFtvSzBzXio?feature=shared

Badge and ID Camera Application

MEMBERS: Caroline Ruden; Arron Russell; Avry Voyles; Edwin Lopez; Nancy Thach

ADVISOR: Dr. Joe Jabara; Dr. Gary Brooking

Sly Fox Camera Co. seeks to bridge the gap between security assessment and implementation, addressing a critical challenge faced by security teams worldwide: the need for discreet and accurate company badge capture. Through innovative technologies, the application will empower cyber penetration teams and law enforcement agencies to capture company identification badges while remaining discreet. It's not merely about capturing data; it's about enhancing the efficiency of security assessments by quantifiably reducing the manual effort required to obtain critical information. The project's key insights revolve around optimizing the ID data capture process, ensuring the application or physical device a stealthy operation, and quantifying the time savings it offers, while ideally keeping costs down. The next steps in this project include rigorous testing and refinement, aiming to establish the reliability, security, and effectiveness of the app in various security testing scenarios.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6oywK__nIlk

Cosmos Twirl Game

MEMBERS: Elizabeth Statzer; Ernest Stevens; Elijah Curry, Kaelyn Godfrey

ADVISOR: Dr. Huabo Lu

Cosmos Twirl is a point-and-click first-person atmospheric horror/puzzle video game in which everyone on Earth has disappeared except for the player, and the player must explore to find out what happened. The setting starts out in a mall, but the world shifts around through time and space as the player progresses, and finds out they’re not truly alone.

Many video games in the indie horror genre rely on gimmicks such as jump scares and chase sequences in order to scare players. 3E Studios is aiming for the concept of slow horror, in which the ambiance and environment is unsettling. In addition, the game is stylized to resemble the Playstation1 and early 3D PC era.

The team has used free, open-source tools such as Godot and Blender to create this game, and develops and tests collaboratively through GitHub and Discord.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wiXcgRDc3-c