Ghost in the Wires and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle. Learn more



or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering
Sell Us Your Item
For a $2.00 Gift Card
Trade in
More Buying Choices
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
Start reading Ghost in the Wires on your Kindle in under a minute.

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.
Sorry, this item is not available in
Image not available for
Color:
Image not available

To view this video download Flash Player

 

Ghost in the Wires: My Adventures as the World's Most Wanted Hacker [Hardcover]

Kevin Mitnick , Steve Wozniak , William L. Simon
4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (421 customer reviews)

List Price: $25.99
Price: $17.65 & FREE Shipping on orders over $25. Details
You Save: $8.34 (32%)
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
In Stock.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. Gift-wrap available.
Want it Tuesday, May 28? Choose One-Day Shipping at checkout. Details

Formats

Amazon Price New from Used from
Kindle Edition $8.89  
Hardcover $17.65  
Paperback --  
MP3 CD, Audiobook, Unabridged $22.62  
Unknown Binding --  
Audible Audio Edition, Unabridged $21.95 or Free with Audible 30-day free trial
Shop the new tech.book(store)
New! Introducing the tech.book(store), a hub for Software Developers and Architects, Networking Administrators, TPMs, and other technology professionals to find highly-rated and highly-relevant career resources. Shop books on programming and big data, or read this week's blog posts by authors and thought-leaders in the tech industry. > Shop now

Book Description

August 15, 2011
Kevin Mitnick was the most elusive computer break-in artist in history. He accessed computers and networks at the world's biggest companies--and however fast the authorities were, Mitnick was faster, sprinting through phone switches, computer systems, and cellular networks. He spent years skipping through cyberspace, always three steps ahead and labeled unstoppable. But for Kevin, hacking wasn't just about technological feats-it was an old fashioned confidence game that required guile and deception to trick the unwitting out of valuable information.

Driven by a powerful urge to accomplish the impossible, Mitnick bypassed security systems and blazed into major organizations including Motorola, Sun Microsystems, and Pacific Bell. But as the FBI's net began to tighten, Kevin went on the run, engaging in an increasingly sophisticated cat and mouse game that led through false identities, a host of cities, plenty of close shaves, and an ultimate showdown with the Feds, who would stop at nothing to bring him down.

Ghost in the Wires is a thrilling true story of intrigue, suspense, and unbelievable escape, and a portrait of a visionary whose creativity, skills, and persistence forced the authorities to rethink the way they pursued him, inspiring ripples that brought permanent changes in the way people and companies protect their most sensitive information.

Frequently Bought Together

Ghost in the Wires: My Adventures as the World's Most Wanted Hacker + The Art of Deception: Controlling the Human Element of Security + The Art of Intrusion: The Real Stories Behind the Exploits of Hackers, Intruders and Deceivers
Price for all three: $40.60

Buy the selected items together


Editorial Reviews

Review

"Intriguing, insightful and extremely educational into the mind of one who truly mastered the art of social engineering with the use of a computer and modern day technologies. I strongly believe that one can learn a great deal about protecting themselves once they understand how another one perpetrates the crime." (Frank W. Abagnale, author of Catch Me if You Can )

About the Author

Kevin Mitnick, the world's most famous (former) computer hacker, has been the subject of countless news and magazine articles, the idol of thousands of would-be hackers, and a one-time "most wanted" criminal of cyberspace, on the run from the bewildered Feds. Now a security consultant, he has spoken to audiences at conventions around the world, been on dozens of major national TV and radio shows, and even testified in front of Congress. He is the author of The Art of Deception and The Art of Intrusion.

Co-author William Simon is a bestselling co-author of numerous books, including iCon (the biography of Steve Jobs) and Kevin Mitnick's previous two books. He has also written for USA Today and The Washington Post and been interviewed on CNBC, CNN, NPR and by The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, BusinessWeek, Time, Newsweek, and many other publications.

Product Details

  • Hardcover: 432 pages
  • Publisher: Little, Brown and Company; 1 edition (August 15, 2011)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0316037702
  • ISBN-13: 978-0316037709
  • Product Dimensions: 6.1 x 1.4 x 9.6 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (421 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #40,507 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Authors

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

This has been the life story of Kevin Mitnick. Eugene Wolfgang VonSnowden  |  226 reviewers made a similar statement
The book is well written and is an easy read. bjweber  |  102 reviewers made a similar statement
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
103 of 112 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars 400 pages gone in two evenings. August 8, 2011
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
If I wouldn't have started to halucinate at 2am from being so tired after reading for 8 hours, I would have read this entire book through in one sitting. The book isn't overly technical yet is a huge eye opener for anyone who isn't intimately familiar with the details of Kevin Mitnick as the most wanted hacker of the 90's. If you have a moderate interest in computing, you'll encounter many jaw dropping moments in reaction to the clever, often brazen and sometimes paranoid escapades captured in the book. Towards the 3/4 mark in the book, the story gets a bit drawn out, but was completely well worth the read.
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
71 of 82 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Old Game, New Tools August 1, 2011
Format:Hardcover
When it comes to true crime, I'm pretty squeamish. Nothing violent, please. Clever and devious are what I'm looking for. Frank Abagnale's Catch Me If You Can: The True Story of a Real Fake is one of the best, and it's hard not to compare any subsequent caper story with it.

Ghost in the Wires doesn't reach the level of audacity of Catch Me if You Can - impersonating technicians over the phone doesn't rise to the sheer nerve of a teenager impersonating an airline pilot or a doctor, as Abagnale did, and getting away with it. But Ghost in the Wires goes well beyond the adolescent bragfest of phone hacks that it could have been.

I think this is largely due to the co-writer, William L. Simon. Kevin Mitnick describes in his acknowledgments, how he and Simon argued over how detailed and technical the book should be, and apparently Simon prevailed. There's enough detail to explain how the scams were possible, but not so specific as to send the non-programmer into a hexadecimal stupor.

Another big plus is that many of the hacks depended as much on what Mitnick calls "social engineering" as on specialist knowledge. Unlike the stereotypical computer nerd, Mitnick was as comfortable and proficient at schmoozing people as he was writing code - he could talk his way into places that were restricted and convince people he was entitled to classified information. These were scams anyone can understand.

Mitnick also succeeds at not crossing the line from confident to insufferable, which is another pitfall of true crime tell-alls. Perhaps we can once again thank William Simon for this achievement.

I expected to skim this 400-page book but ended up reading every word. Mitnick was unbelievably audacious, and he says he never profited from his exploits. Knowing the risks (especially after he had already spent an unpleasant stretch in jail), how could he continue to risk getting caught again? He claims he was addicted to hacking, and while that seemed to me a sorry excuse for criminal behavior, it started to seem like the only possible explanation.

Whatever Mitnick's reasons, Ghost in the Wires is as much fun to read as any summer thriller.
Was this review helpful to you?
41 of 49 people found the following review helpful
By AirDisa
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
A fascination with hacking goes back pretty far for me (I'm an old bat). I loved my experiences reading about Kevin Mitnick, even when he made the papers while on the go. The papers were full of hyperbole even then. I knew to reserve my excitement and hold out for Kevin's own words. My patience is rewarded with this book.

I can't help but enjoy reading about someone who has the adept social engineering of a film noir gumshoe, or the undercover detective, who applied it growing up and getting into trouble. Like Kevin, I knew The Three Days of the Condor. I learned it was a favorite of his, and I clung to this fact which fell through the sieve of newspaper myth. Free Kevin!

Now read Kevin's story, where you'll find enough detail to keep any heart racing. Whether or not you have enough awareness for some of the bits, or rely on the plain language, the story can strike sheer terror in the hearts of those who don't know much of anything about bits and bytes. For those who do, this book contains updated method nomenclature and references to security protocol that it's valuable from that perspective.

Kevin possesses the kind of curiosity to dig and uncover gems of hidden info for esoteric purposes in order to unlock a power only a successful hacker knows about. Social engineering is akin to the confidence game, but different all the same when it involves computer networks. The best hackers are never caught, never known about. Kevin has a different distinction: The first and the grandest adventure story, ever.

You don't need to be a hacker or security professional to appreciate and learn from it. Today, security is serious business and hackers typically have bad or misguided intent. Kevin's motivation was harmless fun at the expense of a system, and honest curiosity which was not rewarded with a government security detail. Fear prevailed then, as hacking was an unknown phenomenon. An innocent motive seemed totally suspect in a court setting.

One frequent result of being a trail blazer is its potential costs. When playing around with the law, this can end in time set aside from society. The NYTimes columnist ironically exercised his own opportunistic free market exploit to establish a mythology around Kevin that ruined any chance for freedom. Kevin emerged from lock down to write the correction that I hold in my hands. The highest adventure possible for any security professional.
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars My Suzuki Drive is going to go AWOL unless you give me your modem...
This book gets a bit repetitive I wanted to hack this so I did....than I wanted to hack this so I did.... Read more
Published 9 days ago by Lincoln Dewey
4.0 out of 5 stars Fun book to read
Though he brags on himself a bit, it was a fun book to read. I enjoyed reading it very much.
Published 11 days ago by Wilderness1derer
5.0 out of 5 stars Great read
Great read. Some of the stories were hard to believe, but I guess that's what made Mitnick such a threat as a hacker.
Published 1 month ago by Bob A
5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome Book
This is the first book that keep me up a night, because I couldn't put it down.
I really hope a movie comes out based on this book.
Published 1 month ago by Chad Olson
5.0 out of 5 stars wow what a life lived to the fullest
this story is amazing unfortunately it doesn't seem to have had any effect on the government`s view on things like this.
Published 1 month ago by Alex Autrey
4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting
The techy talk got a bit long, but I'm not a big computer geek. :) The reader did an excellent job.
Published 1 month ago by Jennifer
4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting read
Very informative book. Was cool to learn about all the ways the phone system could be hacked. Kevin came across like a cocky prick at times
Published 1 month ago by Aaron
5.0 out of 5 stars Thanks for the adventure
I very quick read that kept me on the edge of my seat. It wasn't as intoxicating at Catch Me If You Can--in my option nothing can beat a teenager impersonating pilots, doctors,... Read more
Published 2 months ago by GoodLuckTina
5.0 out of 5 stars VERY interesting!
I am no reviewer of books.

I loved the stories of his life. This could really be a great movie. in fact they did make this movie but they totally bastardized it. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Scott
5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing book...seriously
This book is incredible from cover to cover...well I read it on a nexus 7 but you get my point here. Kevins story is jaw dropping. Read more
Published 2 months ago by d0x
Search Customer Reviews
Only search this product's reviews


Forums

Search Customer Discussions
Search all Amazon discussions

Topic From this Discussion
Kindle version Vs Audio version Be the first to reply
Ghost in the Wires not for kindle?
So Europe has to wait once more... Or we can get it when we travel to the US... booh..
Sep 24, 2011 by KristofH |  See all 6 posts
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 




So You'd Like to...



Look for Similar Items by Category