The Art of Deception: Controlling the Human Element of Security

The Art of Deception: Controlling the Human Element of Security | Kevin D. Mitnick, William L. Simon | It's just excellent

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The Art of Decepti...

	The Art of Deception: Controlling the Human Element of Security Kevin D. Mitnick, William L. Simon Wiley, 2003 - 368 pages average customer review:based on 122 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

The world's most infamous hacker offers an insider's view of the low-tech threats to high-tech security
Kevin Mitnick's exploits as a cyber-desperado and fugitive form one of the most exhaustive FBI manhunts in history and have spawned dozens of articles, books, films, and documentaries. Since his release from federal prison, in 1998, Mitnick has turned his life around and established himself as one of the most sought-after computer security experts worldwide. Now, in The Art of Deception, the world's most notorious hacker gives new meaning to the old adage, "It takes a thief to catch a thief."
Focusing on the human factors involved with information security, Mitnick explains why all the firewalls and encryption protocols in the world will never be enough to stop a savvy grifter intent on rifling a corporate database or an irate employee determined to crash a system. With the help of many fascinating true stories of successful attacks on business and government, he illustrates just how susceptible even the most locked-down information systems are to a slick con artist impersonating an IRS agent. Narrating from the points of view of both the attacker and the victims, he explains why each attack was so successful and how it could have been prevented in an engaging and highly readable style reminiscent of a true-crime novel. And, perhaps most importantly, Mitnick offers advice for preventing these types of social engineering hacks through security protocols, training programs, and manuals that address the human element of security.

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Social Engineering 101 - Read It or Become a Victim

"The Art of Deception" was recommended to me by an instructor teaching a CISSP prep class. It is both an enjoyable and informative read. Mitnik is the "real deal" in exploiting social engineering techniques and his books should be required reading by corporate security policy makers (and I am sure it is for many already).

This book illustrates various techniques for bypassing established corporate physical and information security security policies. I have actually inadvertently used some of these techniques when troubleshooting network issues or having forgotten my passcard to gain access to systems and rooms. It is often easier to bypass the rules than to go through the steps needed to obtain proper access and people are surprisingly willing to cooperate "just this one time".

This book will help you sensitize your employees to the risks of bypassing security policy and recognize when this might be occurring. Highly recommended!

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It's just excellent

Adequate for noobs and pros to understand how important social engineering in our security is, this applied not only in software; you can relate it with anything in your live.
Highly recommended

Awesome book

This is a complex read, not that it has good literary qualities, but in that it is packed with information that relates to other information within the book, and gaining an overall "bigger-picture" understanding of the concepts withing this book requires multiple readings.

Frightening

Read this book or become a victim! Not only will you learn the how's and why's of social engineering, but you will also be thoroughly entertained by Mitnick's stories. Everyone in the security field should consider The Art of Deception required reading. Let me rephrase that - everyone should be required to read this book. Period.

This would be a great book to recommend to your employees as part of security awareness training. The text is accessible and drives the message home that social engineering is a very real threat.

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This book is quite an eye-opener

This is a great, but frightening book. The book explains many, many ways how "social engineers" (what the author calls those who manipulate strangers) can take advantage of people. These stories are clearly and convincingly illustrated by examples. Unfortunately, when one realizes all the people who have access to their private information and that it only takes one to fall for the kind of tricks mentioned here, it is clear that safety is all but impossible. That said, this can serve as a wake up call to fix what we can, especially in our own workplaces. My one complaint with the book is that the sample security policies in the last chapter were not available electronically.

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