Elements and Performance Criteria

The range statement relates to the unit of competency as a whole. It allows for different work environments and situations that may affect performance. Bold italicised wording, if used in the performance criteria, is detailed below. Essential operating conditions that may be present with training and assessment (depending on the work situation, needs of the candidate, accessibility of the item, and local industry and regional contexts) may also be included.

Perimeter topology may include:
3 legged
back-to-back private
back-to-back public.
Basic functionality may include:
access control lists (ACLs)
dynamic host configuration protocol (DHCP)
routing
secure network address translation (NAT).
Devices may include:
Cisco PIX
Cisco router ACLs
ClearOS
Linux iptables
Microsoft ISA Firewall
SmoothWall
Untangle.
Advanced functions may include:
automated web-client configuration
content filtering
demilitarised zone (DMZ) hosting
firewall policies
forward and reverse caching
load balancing
port forward rules
quality of service (QOS)
server publishing
stateful packet inspection.
VPN tunnel may include:
IPSec
layer 2 tunnelling protocol (L2TP)
point-to-point tunnelling protocol (PPTP)
secure socket tunnelling protocol (SSTP).

The evidence guide provides advice on assessment and must be read in conjunction with the performance criteria, required skills and knowledge, range statement and the Assessment Guidelines for the Training Package.

Overview of assessment

Critical aspects for assessment and evidence required to demonstrate competency in this unit
Evidence of the ability to:
identify threats to perimeter security
develop design for a secure perimeter
deploy perimeter to meet security requirements
design and configure advanced features of perimeter devices to provide additional services
design and configure an integrated VPN solution
conduct exhaustive testing of perimeter.
Context of and specific resources for assessment
Assessment must ensure access to:
site or prototype where perimeter security may be implemented and managed
perimeter devices
organisational security requirements
appropriate learning and assessment support when required.
Where applicable, physical resources should include equipment modified for people with special needs.
Method of assessment
A range of assessment methods should be used to assess practical skills and knowledge. The following examples are appropriate for this unit:
verbal or written questioning to assess candidate’s knowledge of emerging security issues, security features of hardware and software, limitations in vendor solutions, operating systems and software
direct observation of candidate demonstrating deployment and configuration of a security perimeter
direct observation of candidate conducting testing of secure perimeter
evaluation of report that outlines testing procedures, test results and changes made as a result of testing
evaluation of design and implementation of system in terms of performance and suitability for business needs.
Guidance information for assessment
Holistic assessment with other units relevant to the industry sector, workplace and job role is recommended, where appropriate.
Assessment processes and techniques must be culturally appropriate, and suitable to the communication skill level, language, literacy and numeracy capacity of the candidate and the work being performed.
Indigenous people and other people from a non-English speaking background may need additional support.
In cases where practical assessment is used it should be combined with targeted questioning to assess required knowledge.