Customer Reviews

Cybershock: Surviving Hackers, Phreakers, Identity Thieves, Internet Terrorists and Weapons of Mass Disruption

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

There will be those quick to trash this book as sensationalist, and they are partly right. What most people, including the critics, do not realize is that Winn Schwartau went out on a limb in the late 1980's and early 1990's and is *the* primary reason Congress got concerned enough about these issues to demand a Critical Infrastructure Protection program funded at over $1B--it was Winn, not others quick to claim the line, that testified to Congress about an "electronic Pearl Harbor" on 24 June 1991. This book is unabashedly populist and seeks to make this very complex threat entertaining and understandable, and for that reason alone it is worth the time to consider. There are many other serious books for engineers, this is the one for anyone at all from housewife to student to executive. Great airplane book, won't save the world, but will certainly increase your consciousness across the board. Worthy.

This book is needed, it covers the broad area of Information Warfare, and actually gives realistic and understandable examples. A must read for those interested in the topic. The writing style is relaxed, but the content is not shallow. Read it!

Cybershock: Surviving Hackers, Phreakers, Identity Thieves, Internet Terrorists and Weapons of Mass Disruption by Winn Schwartau is an enlightening look at the dangers of the Internet from a consumer/ general user perspective. If I had one book to give friends and family that demonstrates the types of threats they need to be aware of in the information age, it would be Schwartau's Cybershock. Winn wrote this book for the mass market and he never strays from his target audience. He makes no apologies to those who are familiar with technology and security when he provides real-life examples of information security horror stories involving fraud or identity theft that many might label as fear mongering. Winn's stories are personal because he has been a victim and many of his friends and relatives have been targeted as well. One of Winn's major objectives in writing this book was to advance ideas on privacy and Internet rights, and many of the examples point the reader in a specific direction. However, Winn doesn't hide the fact that he is trying to be somewhat controversial to raise awareness on specific issues. The book, after all is entitled Cybershock, not Cybercalm. As an added bonus, the book also provides some interesting historical perspectives as Winn describes and interviews individuals who were visionaries offering information security services or predicted new threats before they emerged.

Speaking as someone who once spent three months behind bars for computer hacking, I can vouch for the authenticity of this book. It should scare you right out of your socks.

And it's not the technical details that should scare you, though there's enough of that. It's the simple "social engineering" that can cost you hundreds of thousands of dollars. A good hacker doesn't need to touch a computer - he just picks his target, gains a bit of information and uses others to do the dirty work, all unsuspecting. By the time you work out you are under attack, someone has taken out a second mortgage on your home, cashed in your life insurance, raided your credit cards and had a hell of a good time at your expense.

Here are case studies to demonstrate it. people driven to bankruptcy, despair and suicide.

Get a firewall on your computer right NOW. And do all the other things this book advises.

Otherwise you are a mug.

Don't figure it won't happen to you - if you are at all active in cyberspace, then you are leaving footprints behind that can be picked up and exploited by a hacker looking for his next target.

Buy this book - it will be the best handful of dollars you ever spent.

This book is a must read for "just the facts" about the seedier side of the internet. As a "netcop" for a large ISP, I have recommended it to several people. It give the nuts and bolts of how things like viruses, denial of sercvice attacks, cyberstalking, and email fraud work with a friendly, no-jargon style. From everything on how to protect your privacy while online, to why spam is a bad thing, this book covers all the bases. Unlike many books on the same topic, this one does not go into the details of how to do these deeds- just how to keep them from happening to you.

I especially recommend the section on how to keep your kids safe on the net... this book is a one-stop course to common sense on the internet.

An outstanding book which provides a glimpse into the hacker "community" and some insight into the technology they embrace as well. A must read for those interested in the subject of computer security (regardless of which side of the security door you stand on). The level of detail is enough to educate the average reader on the subject without being overwhelming, and enough reference info is provided to allow for further study. Winn's "irreverent" tone is refreshing as well, making the book entertaining at the same time. Great book!

This is one of the best books that I've read, ever. It gives you a sense of what the hacker culture is like with great examples and provides excellent information.

This book is a good explanation of hackers of all varieties, their techniques, and what ordinary people and businesses can do to protect against them. In a usually-even-tempered voice, Mr. Schwartau tackles common misconceptions and explains what hackers really are and what threats we should really be worrying about. He has had a reputation of being a Chicken Little with regard to hacking, but at least a respected Chicken Little. None of this is real knock-your-socks-off stuff. But it's good in an enjoyable sort of a way.

Schwartau is a compelling writer, who spells out in easy-to-understand terms just what the internet REALLY means to those who live, work, and play there. He delves into security issues for the personal user, as well as for the businessman, while never treating the reader like an ignoramus. It's a riveting, enjoyable book, packed full of information that will both fascinate and unsettle everyone who logs on-line for any length of time, for any reason. Schwartau gives us a study of hackers and phreakers that doesn't treat them as heroes or villains, but as members of a different culture, as apart from the mainstream as the beats and hippies of the 50's and 60's were to Ozzie and Harriet. Buy this book, read it, make notes. And then for god's sake tell EVERYONE you know to get their own copy. This thing is more a primer for the 21st century, than a book on computers.

I'm not saying not to read this book. If you're after info and facts, it's got a lot of them, and they're useful and thought provoking.

At the same time, take it with a grain of salt. This book would have been much better written if the author had been able to take himself out of it a little more. His acedotes are amusing, but they give the whole book a feeling of condensation, a "smarter than thou" feeling. And it just got under my nerves.

If you're reading it for the info, go ahead. If you're reading it for reading, try something else.