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Intermediate
Level 4 · Validation

TARA Specialist

Run defensible Threat Analysis and Risk Assessments on production architectures.

Duration
5 weeks
Delivery format
Hybrid
Certification
AutoSec TARA Practitioner
Enroll NowBook Consultation

Overview

What This Program Is For

A TARA is not a deliverable, it is a decision record. This program teaches the method end to end and — more importantly — teaches you to produce a result a second competent engineer would reproduce, which is the property assessors actually test for.

Master the TARA method end to end — item definition, asset identification, threat scenarios, attack path analysis, feasibility rating and cybersecurity goal derivation.

Who should attend

  • Security engineers running or reviewing risk assessments
  • E/E architects whose design decisions must trace to rated risk
  • Validation engineers deriving test scope from threat analysis
  • Compliance staff who must challenge a supplier TARA

Prerequisites

  • Familiarity with ISO/SAE 21434 concepts

Curriculum

5 Modules Across 5 weeks

Every module is assessed. Durations are indicative for open cohorts and are compressed or extended for corporate delivery.

  1. Item definition and asset identification

    1 week

  2. Threat scenarios and damage scenarios

    1 week

  3. Attack path analysis

    1 week

  4. Feasibility and risk determination

    1 week

  5. Goals, requirements and review

    1 week

Learning outcomes

What You Take Back to Your Programme

Capability you can demonstrate, not topics you have been exposed to.

What you will be able to do

  • Produce complete item definitions and asset lists
  • Construct and rate attack paths
  • Derive cybersecurity goals and requirements
  • Defend a TARA under assessment conditions

  • Career outcomes

    • Security Engineer
    • Risk Analyst
    • Security Architect

  • Capability levels

    • Security Validation Specialist

  • Tools and skills

    • Threat modelling workbench
    • Attack path analyser
    • Feasibility rating calculator
    • Cybersecurity goal traceability matrix

Labs included

Hands-On Time on Real Hardware

Lab access is included with this program, and the exercises below are assessed rather than optional.

  • Included lab
    2 assessed exercises

    AutoSec TARA Lab

    Model threats against real vehicle architectures

    Objectives

    • Define items and assets from a real vehicle architecture
    • Derive attack paths and rate feasibility
    • Produce cybersecurity goals and requirements

    Practical exercises

    • Central gateway TARA
      intermediate
      4 hours

      Full assessment of a domain gateway including diagnostic and OTA interfaces.

    • Telematics unit attack paths
      advanced
      3 hours

      Derive and rate attack paths across cellular, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi interfaces.

Certification mapping

Where This Sits in the Framework

How the program maps to the AutoSec Automotive Cybersecurity Capability Framework™ and the certification ladder.

Capability Framework

Security Validation Specialist

Master TARA, security validation, fuzz testing and architecture review.

  • Security validation methodologies
  • Automotive TARA execution
  • Architecture security review
  • Fuzz testing fundamentals

Certification

AutoSec TARA Practitioner

Evidences the ability to implement and audit a Cyber Security Management System against ISO/SAE 21434, UNECE R155/R156 and the Indian AIS series.

Level 2 · Practitioner

Exam preparation

Format
online proctored
Duration
90 minutes
Passing score
75%
Valid for
3 years
  • Hold the Foundation certification or demonstrate equivalent experience
  • Complete ISO 21434 and CSMS Specialist
  • Submit a CSMS artefact portfolio for review
See the full certification ladder

Common questions

TARA Specialist FAQ

What candidates and their managers ask before enrolling.

How much ISO 21434 knowledge do I need first?
Enough to know where TARA sits in the lifecycle. Foundations or equivalent experience is sufficient; you do not need to have run a CSMS. The program spends its time on method rather than on the structure of the standard.
What makes a TARA “defensible”?
Reproducibility. If two engineers assess the same item and reach materially different feasibility ratings, the rating criteria are ambiguous rather than the engineers wrong. A significant part of the program is spent calibrating criteria before assessing anything.
Is the lab work assessed?
Yes. You produce a full TARA on a production-representative architecture in the AutoSec TARA Lab and defend it in a simulated assessment review. That defence is the practical component of the credential.

Ready to Start AutoSec TARA Practitioner?

Enrol as an individual, or talk to us about running this program for your engineering team.

Enroll NowBook Consultation