Internet Forensics [Paperback]

Robert Jones F.R (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 14, 2005

Because it's so large and unregulated, the Internet is a fertile breeding ground for all kinds of scams and schemes. Usually it's your credit card number they're after, and they won't stop there. Not just mere annoyances, these scams are real crimes, with real victims. Now, thanks to Internet Forensics from O'Reilly, there's something you can do about it.

This practical guide to defending against Internet fraud gives you the skills you need to uncover the origins of the spammers, con artists, and identity thieves that plague the Internet. Targeted primarily at the developer community, Internet Forensics shows you how to extract the information that lies hidden in every email message, web page, and web server on the Internet. It describes the lengths the bad guys will go to cover their tracks, and offers tricks that you can use to see through their disguises. You'll also gain an understanding for how the Internet functions, and how spammers use these protocols to their devious advantage.

The book is organized around the core technologies of the Internet-email, web sites, servers, and browsers. Chapters describe how these are used and abused and show you how information hidden in each of them can be revealed. Short examples illustrate all the major techniques that are discussed. The ethical and legal issues that arise in the uncovering of Internet abuse are also addressed.

Not surprisingly, the audience for Internet Forensics is boundless. For developers, it's a serious foray into the world of Internet security; for weekend surfers fed up with spam, it's an entertaining and fun guide that lets them play amateur detective from the safe confines of their home or office.

Editorial Reviews

Review

""Internet Forensics" compiles a lot of information that has typically been available only by word of mouth or bitter experience. The average user will find themselves able to apply its techniques, and even if they choose not to, they will gain a deep understanding of how the Internet works. The book's clear style and firm grounding in reality make it an excellent read." - Gavin Inglis, news@UK, June 2006

About the Author

Robert Jones runs Craic Computing, a small bioinformatics company in Seattle that provides advanced software and data analysis services to the biotechnology industry. He was a bench molecular biologist for many years before programming got the better of him. Dr. Jones has extensive experience in Linux/Apache/MySQL/Perl software development and Linux systems administration.

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: O'Reilly Media; 1 edition (October 14, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 059610006X
• ISBN-13: 978-0596100063
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #991,067 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Robert Jones is the president of simple beaute. Born and raised in Houston, TX, he is a well-known hair and makeup artist with almost twenty years of experience. His clients include Neiman Marcus, Mary Kay Cosmetics, Watters and Watters, Bergdorf Goodman, Oil of Olay, Nexxus, Levi's, Marie Claire, Elle Magazine, Brides Magazine, Elegant Bride, Delta Burke, Diahann Carroll, Sheryl Crow, Carol Channing, The Dixie Chicks, and many many others. He travels to five cities per month giving makeup demonstrations to approximately 5,000 women. He has his own line of brushes and makeup organizational tools (www.simplebeaute.com), with plans to launch his own signature line of makeup. He divides his time between Dallas,Texas and New York City.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Reading audience not well defined, March 24, 2006

By 

Always a Critic "apa" (Pittsburgh, PA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Internet Forensics (Paperback)

Normally, I place little weight on the lowest and highest reviews for a book. In this case, I discarded the review "Far, far below O'Reilly's standards, February 7, 2006."

However, after reading the book, I realized that this was the most accurate review. Is the book for Administrators or for home users? For UNIX or Windows users? The author would have you believe that it offers something for all. I disagree.

Ultimately, it is so superficial and spread out that it is of little use to anyone. Why the author throws in a simple intro to IP Addresses and then seems to take up paragraph after paragraph on parameter options for Unix-based commands is beyond me.

This book reads like bad spam - enticing the using with yet another title with catch words that are trendier than "free Vigra" - Internet + Forensics - both a limp approach to the quest for more money - yours and mine.

Fight back - Don't waste your money on this book.

Also notice that the author tries to gain our alliance and sympathies with his similar plight of spam email. If the guy truly is a security "expert" he should be spam-free. Free advice: Try a spam blocker, an email referral service, or just good system administration.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Far, far below O'Reilly's standards, February 7, 2006

By 

David Byrne (Bailey, CO) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Internet Forensics (Paperback)

This book is written at a very low level. It is best suited to individuals with a very low experiance level; NOT for security professionals. O'Reilly has a number of good security books, but this is not one of them. Don't waste your money on it.

4.0 out of 5 stars Very good and well organized, October 15, 2008

By 

J. Druin (Kentucky, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Internet Forensics (Paperback)

Internet Forensics
By Robert Jones
October 2005
Pages: 238
ISBN 10: 0-596-10006-X | ISBN 13: 9780596100063

Very nice. This book covers various interconnected internet security issues including email forensics, the inner workings of SMTP, spam, phishing, hacked spam-bot servers, proxy servers, anonymous surfing, and DNS. This is a relatively easy read considering the topics and the book is generally written in such a way as to tie all the topics together into a cohesive analysis. This was helpful since real-world situation never involve only one of these technologies but instead require a progression. The book discusses both theory and practical application.

I found the information helpful and would like to see the next edition cover each topic with more depth. Also I would like to see more variation of the email topics. For example, a section on Outlook/Exchange specific emails, IMAP protocol emails, etc. could be useful. There were some sections that would benefit from more examples as well. For instance, a section on how to dissect Microsoft Outlook formatted emails using Cygwin or Linux would have been a nice edition.

I definitely recommend it and enjoyed studying the contents.

Summary:

- Very good advice for both professional in the computer security field, hobbyist, and those concerned with personal computer security.
- Focus is on practical advice and examples