Top Books To Read In 2023
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Sandworm
A strange sequence of cyberattacks first appeared in the public eye in 2014. More and more audacious attacks were launched on American utilities, NATO facilities, and Eastern European power networks. These attacks culminated in the summer of 2017, when the NotPetya virus was released, infiltrating, disrupting, and crippling some of the world’s top enterprises, ranging from pharmaceutical and software firms to transportation corporations. ATMs stopped working in the Ukrainian city in the focus of the onslaught. Trains stopped running, and mail stopped being delivered. Many hospitals lost power. The global dissemination of NotPetya resulted in the costliest cyberattack in history, estimated at $10 billion.
The hackers behind these attacks, collectively referred to as “Sandworm,” are swiftly becoming renowned as the most lethal gang of cyberwarriors in history. They are a relentless, highly competent group working for Russia’s military intelligence agency, and they are willing to conduct broad, unconstrained strikes on their enemies’ most essential infrastructure. They attack both the public and business sectors, as well as the armed forces and regular citizens.
Sandworm is a terrifying international mystery that thinks about the threat this group poses to international peace and safety. Sandworm not only reveals the truth about Russia’s worldwide digital onslaught in an age when conflict is no longer fought on the battlefield, but also about the Kremlin’s role in manipulating other governments. It demonstrates the disturbing trend toward a blurring of borders between online and offline violence, between war and peace.
Kingpin
Kevin Poulsen, who used to be a hacker, has established himself over the course of the previous decade as one of the most prominent investigative reporters covering the cybercrime beat. In Kingpin, he presents his unparalleled access and experience in the form of a book for the very first time. The result is an engrossing game of cat and mouse, as well as an unprecedented look into the sort of organized crime that has emerged as the hallmark of the twenty-first century.
The news quickly traveled through the underground hacking community like some kind of unstoppable new virus: Someone, some bright and audacious criminal, had just launched a hostile takeover of an online criminal network that stole billions of dollars from the economy of the United States.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) moved quickly to initiate a significant undercover operation with the goal of locating the new kingpin, while other agencies all around the world deployed scores of moles and double agents. The cybercops worked together to capture a large number of unsuspecting hackers and bring them into custody… Despite this, their primary target consistently demonstrated an incredible ability to identify their informants and see through their schemes at every turn.
They were looking for the most improbable of criminals, which turned out to be a talented coder with a hippie philosophy who also had a secret identity as a supervillain. As the famous “white-hat” hacker Max “Vision” Butler, he was a star in the field of programming and even worked as a consultant for the FBI at one point. However, while operating under the alias “Iceman,” he discovered that the realm of data theft was an appealing opportunity to put his enormous skills to the test. He gained unauthorized access to tens of thousands of computers across the country and stole untold millions of credit card details. He was so skilled at hacking computers that he was able to take advantage of his fellow hackers and steal their ill-gotten profits. He was a part of a vast real-world criminal enterprise that was run in conjunction with a smooth-talking con artist.
The Kill Chain
Our nation has been the preeminent military power in the globe for many generations of our country’s citizens. How the United States military fights, as well as the technologies and weapons it uses in battle, have never been called into question. Nevertheless, that long-standing reality is increasingly disintegrating. Traditional sources of power in the United States are dwindling as a result of the proliferation of new technology and the increasing military threat presented by competitors such as China. The United States faces a very real possibility of being defeated in a future battle.
Artificial intelligence, autonomous systems, and other emerging technologies are currently revolutionizing global industries and are now poised to turn the model of American defense on its head. As Christian Brose reveals in this urgent wake-up call, the future will be defined by artificial intelligence, autonomous systems, and other emerging technologies. This book addresses the existential threats that are on the horizon, and it charts a method for the United States military to adapt and flourish by utilizing new ways of thinking in addition to new technologies. Although informative, this book is also alarming. The United States of America has to construct a battle network consisting of technology that will enable people to rapidly comprehend dangers, come to judgments, and carry out military actions. This is the process that is known as “the kill chain.” The Kill Chain is an examination of dangers originating from China, Russia, and other parts of the world. It gives hope and, ultimately, insights on how the United States may employ new technologies to prevent war, dissuade aggression, and preserve peace.
On Cyber
On Cyber is a seminal study that bridges the gap between information security and military science to establish the groundwork for an operational art for cyberspace operations. There are hundreds of books that have been written on the strategies of cybersecurity, and there are dozens of books that have been written on the implications of cyberwar for strategic planning. However, there isn’t a book that connects the two of them. That void is filled by On Cyber.
Traditional kinetic warfare has been honed to a fine art over the course of millennia of battle and is now enshrined in an established and tested body of military doctrine. However, cyber operations are always changing, and although this presents a number of opportunities, it also poses a number of serious obstacles. There has been a mad dash among nations all over the world to establish cyber organizations and capabilities, but these nations are having trouble using cyber operations to their advantage. Some have been unsuccessful, while others have had a significant influence on the battlefield and the geopolitical situation throughout the world. At the same time, firms and even individuals are now confronting threats in cyberspace from country states and threat actors supported by nation states, yet their governments appear to be unable to protect them.
On Cyber is a fundamental book, and the principles you acquire from reading it will help you perform your job more effectively, regardless of whether you are a network defender or a cyber operator. Importantly, network defenders will have a solid understanding of the ways in which nation-state threat actors conceive, organize themselves, carry out their operations, and target your company. The operators of cyberspace will get a look into the future of how cyber doctrine will develop.
The authors are possibly the best two people to author such an ambitious work because they have served on the faculty of West Point for a combined 20 years, participated in military cyber operations and training, helped architect the U.S. Army’s Cyber Branch, and together possess more than 50 years of military experience. In addition, the authors have served on the faculty of West Point.
The Cuckoo’s Egg
Even before it was widely known that terrorists use the internet as a tool on a worldwide scale, one astute citizen of the United States realized its menacing potential. Armed with conclusive evidence of electronic espionage, he embarked on a very personal mission to unearth a covert network of spies that posed a risk to national security. But would the authorities agree with him and support him? The dramatic firsthand account that Cliff Stoll provides is described by Smithsonian as “a computer-age detective thriller that is instantly engaging [and] stunningly captivating.”
Cliff Stoll, who had formerly worked as an astronomer but was now employed as a systems manager at Lawrence Berkeley Lab, was alerted to the presence of an illegal user on his system by an accounting error involving 75 cents. “Hunter” was the code name given to the hacker, who was an unknown intruder who was successful in breaking into US computer networks and stealing vital information related to military and security. Stoll started his own investigation, which consisted of eavesdropping on the person who was spying on him. It was a risky game of deceit that involved broken codes, satellites, and missile bases – a one-man sting operation that eventually caught the notice of the CIA…and ultimately led to the capture of a worldwide spy ring that was fueled by cash, cocaine, and the KGB.
Hacking – The Art of Exploitation
Hacking is the art of finding creative solutions to challenging problems, whether that means discovering an unusual solution to a difficult problem or exploiting weaknesses in sloppy code. Hacking may also be thought of as the art of solving problems. There are a lot of people who say they are hackers, but very few actually have the solid technical foundation that is necessary to really push the edge.
The author, Jon Erickson, does not only demonstrate how to utilize pre-existing vulnerabilities; rather, he elucidates the inner-workings of obscure hacking techniques. The second edition of Hacking: The Art of Exploitation presents an overview of the principles of C programming from the point of view of a hacker. This is done with the intention of making the art and science of hacking available to a wider audience.
You won’t need to make any changes to your existing operating system because the LiveCD that comes with the package gives you access to a full Linux development and debugging environment. Utilize it to fill in any knowledge gaps you may have and investigate various hacking tactics on your own as you follow along with the examples provided in the book. Participate actively in the debugging of code, the overflowing of buffers, the hijacking of network traffic, the bypassing of protections, the exploiting of cryptographic weaknesses, and possibly even the invention of new exploits. You will learn in this book how to do the following things: Computers can be programmed through the use of C, assembly language, and shell scripts.
– By exploiting buffer overflows and format strings, corrupt the memory of the system in order to run arbitrary code.
– Examine the processor registers and the memory of the system using a debugger in order to obtain an accurate comprehension of what is taking place — Find a way to circumvent conventional security precautions such as nonexecutable stacks and intrusion detection systems – You can disguise your presence by modifying the way a server logs activity after gaining access to a remote server using port-binding or connect-back shellcode and then hiding your presence.
– Traffic on the network can be redirected, open ports can be hidden, and TCP connections can be taken over — Use the FMS attack to decrypt wireless traffic that has been encrypted, and use a password probability matrix to speed up brute-force attacks.
Hackers are always exploring new territory, expanding their knowledge of the unknown, and developing their artistic skills. Even if you are not previously familiar with programming, the second edition of Hacking: The Art of Exploitation will provide you with a comprehensive understanding of programming, machine architecture, network connections, and the various hacking techniques that are now in use. When you combine this information with the Linux environment that is provided, the only thing missing is your own originality.
