The Art of Intrusion: The Real Stories Behind the Exploits of Hackers, Intruders and Deceivers

by Kevin D. Mitnick, William L. Simon

Overview

Hacker extraordinaire Kevin Mitnick delivers the explosive encore to his bestselling The Art of Deception
Kevin Mitnick, the world's most celebrated hacker, now devotes his life to helping businesses and governments combat data thieves, cybervandals, and other malicious computer intruders. In his bestselling The Art of Deception, Mitnick presented fictionalized case studies that illustrated how savvy computer crackers use "social engineering" to compromise even the most technically secure computer systems. Now, in his new book, Mitnick goes one step further, offering hair-raising stories of real-life computer break-ins-and showing how the victims could have prevented them. Mitnick's reputation within the hacker community gave him unique credibility with the perpetrators of these crimes, who freely shared their stories with him-and whose exploits Mitnick now reveals in detail for the first time, including:

• A group of friends who won nearly a million dollars in Las Vegas by reverse-engineering slot machines
• Two teenagers who were persuaded by terrorists to hack into the Lockheed Martin computer systems
• Two convicts who joined forces to become hackers inside a Texas prison
• A "Robin Hood" hacker who penetrated the computer systems of many prominent companies-andthen told them how he gained access

With riveting "you are there" descriptions of real computer break-ins, indispensable tips on countermeasures security professionals need to implement now, and Mitnick's own acerbic commentary on the crimes he describes, this book is sure to reach a wide audience-and attract the attention of both law enforcement agencies and the media.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780471782667
Publisher:	Wiley
Publication date:	12/27/2005
Pages:	288
Product dimensions:	6.08(w) x 8.76(h) x 0.85(d)

About the Author

Kevin D. Mitnick, bestselling author of The Art of Deception, may be the most celebrated hacker ever to "go legit" and apply his considerable skills to helping organizations protect themselves from people like himself. Considered an authority on preventing security breaches, he has appeared on Good Morning America, 60 Minutes, and others.

William L. Simon is coauthor of The Art of Deception and the bestseller iCon: Steve Jobs, also published by Wiley.

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Table of Contents

Chapter 1 Hacking the Casinos for a Million Bucks 1

Chapter 2 When Terrorists Come Calling 23

Chapter 3 The Texas Prison Hack 49

Chapter 4 Cops and Robbers 69

Chapter 5 The Robin Hood Hacker 91

Chapter 6 The Wisdom and Folly of Penetration Testing 115

Chapter 7 Of Course Your Bank Is Secure — Right? 139

Chapter 8 Your Intellectual Property Isn’t Safe 153

Chapter 9 On the Continent 195

Chapter 10 Social Engineers — How They Work and How to Stop Them 221

Chapter 11 Short Takes 247

Index 261

Editorial Reviews

"...a valuable investment..." (AccountingWeb UK, 30^th August 2005)

“…he retells stories provided by his other hackers of how they managed, often with pitiful ease, to break supposedly secure companies all over the world.” (Director, May 2005)

“…a compilation of real hacking stories told to Mitnick by fellow hackers…” (VNUnet.com, March 2005)

It would be difficult to find an author with more credibility than Mitnick to write about the art of hacking. In 1995, he was arrested for illegal computer snooping, convicted and held without bail for two years before being released in 2002. He clearly inspires unusual fear in the authorities and unusual dedication in the legions of computer security dabblers, legal and otherwise. Renowned for his use of "social engineering," the art of tricking people into revealing secure information such as passwords, Mitnick (The Art of Deception) introduces readers to a fascinating array of pseudonymous hackers. One group of friends bilks Las Vegas casinos out of more than a million dollars by mastering the patterns inherent in slot machines; another fellow, less fortunate, gets mixed up with a presumed al-Qaeda–style terrorist; and a prison convict leverages his computer skills to communicate with the outside world, unbeknownst to his keepers. Mitnick's handling of these engrossing tales is exemplary, for which credit presumably goes to his coauthor, writing pro Simon. Given the complexity (some would say obscurity) of the material, the authors avoid the pitfall of drowning readers in minutiae. Uniformly readable, the stories—some are quite exciting—will impart familiar lessons to security pros while introducing lay readers to an enthralling field of inquiry. Agent, David Fugate. (Mar.) (Publishers Weekly, February 14, 2005)

Infamous criminal hacker turned computer security consultant Mitnick offers an expert sequel to his best-selling The Art of Deception, this time supplying real-life rather than fictionalized stories of contemporary hackers sneaking into corporate servers worldwide. Each chapter begins with a computer crime story that reads like a suspense novel; it is a little unnerving to learn how one's bank account is vulnerable to digital thieves or how hackers with an interest in gambling can rake in thousands of dollars in just minutes at a compromised slot machine. The hack revealed, Mitnick then walks readers step by step through a prevention method. Much like Deception, this book illustrates that hacking techniques can penetrate corporate and government systems protected by state-of-the-art security.
Mitnick's engaging writing style combines intrigue, entertainment, and education. As with Deception, information technology professionals can learn how to detect and prevent security breaches, while informed readers can sit back and enjoy the stories of cybercrime. Recommended for most public and academic libraries. —Joe Accardi, William Rainey Harper Coll. Lib., Palatine, IL (Library Journal, January 15, 2005)

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