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I'm a CS university undergraduate student, currently in my last year of studies for my BSc (not MSc). Every student needs to submit a thesis in order to get the degree. I have the option to suggest a topic to my professor in the field of NETWORK SECURITY (where my interest currently is for the last couple of years) and get this assignment as my thesis.

I have a theoritical and some practical knowledge on network and system security (I have also used some tools in the past like BackTrack Linux, Metasploit, Nessus/OpenVAS, nmap, nikto etc) and I would say I have good programming skills (C/C++, Java).

The problem is, with so many technologies involved and so many different things I am a little lost. I don't know what can qualify as a thesis topic, and because I have a more broad and somewhat superficial knowledge of the whole sector (in a sense that I don't know the nuts and bolts of everything) I don't know where to focus and how deep can this focus go into a particular topic.

So, what I am essentially asking is the following: assuming that I have at least 6 months for research, development/programming (if required) and technical writing, and assuming that I also have the desire to learn new things on IT security, dig into interesting topics, advance my current skills etc,

WHAT TOPICS CAN YOU RECOMMEND ME AS A THESIS SUBJECT?

Please go into some detail if you can so I get a better understading of the scope. Subjects can vary, from DNS security to developing a IDS/IPS, from Botnets to various attacks, and whatever else you can think of (BUT, make sure they fit as an undergraduate thesis project, I fear I will suggest something advanced by mistake and I won't be able to deliver)

Thanks very much.

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Look at top questions or popular tags from this site. Consider issues involving the exchange and control of patient health records -- openness, authenticity, security, multiple sources, correctness and reconciliation. Solve that problem in an open way and you'll cover a lot of domains. You can even have the exchange protocol requirements I sketched up on a napkin sized piece of paper if you get enough rep to enter chat. Maybe look at providing a pluggable malicious activity detection system. How can you detect changes that tripwire can't? – Jeff Ferland♦ Oct 6 '11 at 16:38
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Unless your professor is too busy, meet with her/him during office hours. Explain your interest in network security and ask what is required of a thesis topic. If your professor is unavailable, ask a Teaching Assistant, or another professor in the department. It is quite likely that the department or library keeps an archive of past thesis papers and that you may be granted access to the papers or at least a summary paragraph for each. – this.josh Oct 7 '11 at 8:08
maybe you could ask this question on this site proposal: undergraduates‌​. Follow it if you find it interesting! – Daniele B Jan 23 at 17:11

closed as not constructive by Jeff Ferland♦, Antony Vennard, Iszi, Thomas Pornin, AviD♦ Oct 6 '11 at 18:29

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