Saltar a navegação
Fatal System Error
Book

Fatal System Error

The Hunt for the New Crime Lords Who are Bringing Down the Internet

Public Affairs, 2010 mais...


Editorial Rating

8

Qualities

  • Innovative

Recommendation

The Internet has become the ultimate mob hangout, a dangerous venue where U.S. Mafiosi, vicious Russian gang members and illegal hackers from many nations, especially from Eastern Europe, ply their dirty deeds. Cybersecurity reporter Joseph Menn examines cybercrime, exposing the bad guys while telling exciting stories about two intrepid investigators – Barrett Lyon, a U.S.-based “white hat” security hacker, and Andy Crocker, a British cybersecurity agent – who have successfully waged war against cybercriminals. Menn’s book is both fascinating and disturbing, with its discussion of “zombie armies” of computers, and its exotically named online desperadoes, like CumbaJohnny. getAbstract recommends this gripping saga to those who want to protect themselves from cybercrime. This outstanding book’s only deficiency is, ironically, its remarkable, overwhelming abundance of complex detail. If you think you need a cast list, tech manual and dictionary of arcane online terms, never mind; just hang on for a scary, revealing ride.

Take-Aways

  • Cybercriminals use the Web in many illegal ways, costing victims $1 trillion annually.
  • Online criminals threaten the security and safety of you and your company.
  • Their crimes include identity theft, child pornography, commercial scams, financial data theft, illegal gambling and extortion.

About the Author

Joseph Menn covers technology issues, including cybersecurity, for the Financial Times. He also wrote All the Rave: The Rise and Fall of Shawn Fanning’s Napster.


More on this topic

Learners who read this summary also read