Books for/about - hacking

Ubuntu Hacks: Tips & Tools for Exploring, Using, and Tuning Linux (Hacks)

Publisher: O'Reilly Media
Authors: Jonathan Oxer Kyle Rankin Bill Childers

ISBN: 0596527209
List Price: $29.99
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Avg Cusomer Rating: 5
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Summary: Excellent, Excellent, Excellent...
First off, I'd like to express my sincere appreciation to the authors of the "Ubuntu Hacks" book; a fantastic achievement and contribution to the Ubuntu, Debian, and GNU/Linux Community.

The book was obviously written just as Dapper was being released, and being that there were many changes from Breezy 5.10 to Dapper 6.06 LTS, the authors efforts to keep the content as current as possible undoubtedly will be appreciated by everyone reading it after the final Dapper release.

The content is accurate, concise, and skillfully presented by the authors in an apparent tone throughout that denotes sincerity towards the reader.

A common problem with many technical books is that instead of just getting to the point and giving readers the most bang for their buck, they clutter and waste page-space with non-essential information. This book successfully avoids this problem by delivering a balanced amount of information useful for those just getting started with Ubuntu, or GNU/Linux for that matter.

At the same time, professionals and experienced users will be tickled and pleased to find all sorts of "little gems" of information and new ways of using their beloved operating systems (regardless if they use Ubuntu or not). It's simply packed with just about everything one needs to make their time learning and using Linux productive and meaningful.

Job well done.

Summary: Great book for Ubuntu users of all skill levels
Ubuntu is a predominantly desktop-oriented Linux distribution based on Debian GNU/Linux. Its name comes from the South African concept of ubuntu-- which is roughly, "humanity towards others". The first release of Ubuntu, the Warty Warthog, was released in autumn 2004, and each release has maintained a level of usability that makes it a joy to use. This book is like all others I have encountered in this series - it has something for every level of user from beginner to expert. You can read it from beginning to end or pick and choose the parts you are interested in. My favorite section was the one on security, since there is a real lack of information on that subject as it pertains to Ubuntu. I see no table of contents is shown, so I review this book in the context of the table of contents:

1. Getting Started
This chapter shows you how to get started with Ubuntu including all of the information you need to install Ubuntu on your system, how to get started with the Linux command line, set up your printer, file a bug report, and more.
1. Test-Drive Ubuntu
2. Get Help
3. Make Live CD Data Persistent
4. Customize the Ubuntu Live CD
5. Install Ubuntu
6. Dual-Boot Ubuntu and Windows
7. Move Your Windows Data to Ubuntu
8. Install Ubuntu on a Mac
9. Set Up Your Printer
10. Install Ubuntu on an External Drive
11. Install from a Network Boot Server
12. Submit a Bug Report
13. Use the Command Line
14. Get Productive with Applications

2. The Linux Desktop
This chapter helps you work with the GNOME and KDE desktop environments for Linux, and also helps you find out about a few others that are out there. You'll also learn how to set up Java, how to work with files on remote computers, and how to get Ubuntu communicating to handheld devices. To me, the most useful tip was the one on creating PDF files by using the print command from any application in Ubuntu.
15. Get Under the Hood of the GNOME Desktop
16. Tweak the KDE Desktop
17. Switch to a Lighter Window Manager
18. Install Java
19. Search Your Computer
20. Access Remote Filesystems
21. Tweak Your Desktop Like a Pro
22. Sync Your Palm PDA
23. Sync Your Pocket PC
24. Customize the Right-Click Contextual Menu
25. Download and Share Files with the Best P2P Software
26. Make Your Own PDFs
27. Blog with Ubuntu

3. Multimedia
This chapter shows how to play music and movies. You'll learn how to play nearly any kind of audio and video, and burn files, music, and movies to optical discs.
28. Install Multimedia Plug-ins
29. Watch Videos
30. Play DVDs
31. Buy Songs at the iTunes Music Store
32. Get a Grip on CD Ripping
33. Burn CDs and DVDs
34. Automate Audio CD Burning
35. Rip and Encode DVDs
36. Create a Video DVD
37. Connect to a Digital Camera

4. Mobile Ubuntu
This chapter shows how to work with different wireless cards. You'll also learn how to save energy and install add-on cards. The most interesting tip in this chapter explains how have your laptop settings roam with your network. This is very useful for Ubuntu users on the move.
39. Hibernate Your Laptop
40. Prolong Your Battery Life
41. Get Proprietary Wireless Cards Working
42. Roam Wirelessly
43. Make Laptop Settings Roam with Your Network
44. Make Bluetooth Connections
45. Expand Your Laptop
46. Hotswap Your Laptop's Optical Drive

5. X11
Shows how to customize X11, the X Windows System, which is the windowing system that is behind KDE and GNOME. You'll learn how to interface to your mouse and keyboard, and also how to get X11 configured in relation to your graphics card.
47. Configure Multibutton Mice
48. Enable Your Multimedia Keyboard
49. Configure a Touchpad
50. Connect Multiple Displays
51. Change the Ubuntu Splash Screen
52. Enable 3-D Video Acceleration
53. Make Your Fonts Pretty

6. Package Management
This chapter shows you how to work with all of the packages that come with the distribution. It talks about installation techniques, finding new packages, and finally creating your own packages.
54. Manage Packages from the Command Line
55. Manage Packages with Synaptic
56. Manage Packages with Adept
57. Install and Remove Standalone Files
58. Search for Packages from the Command Line
59. Install Software from Source
60. Modify the List of Package Repositories
61. Cache Packages Locally with Apt-cacher
62. Create an Ubuntu Package
63. Compile a Source Package
64. Convert Non-Ubuntu Packages
65. Create Your Own Package Repository
66. Convert Debian to Ubuntu

7. Security
You'll learn about the "sudo" command, intrusion detection and prevention, and safeguarding data via encryption.
67. Limit Permissions with sudo
68. Manage Security Updates
69. Protect Your Network with a Firewall
70. Use an Encrypted Filesystem to Protect Your Data
71. Encrypt Your Email and Important Files
72. Surf the Web Anonymously
73. Keep Windows Malware off Your System

8. Administration
This talks about basic system administration which includes adding users, altering the system configuration, and doing backups, among other tasks. One of the most interesting tips in this section was how to create videos that capture what is done on the desktop which can then be shared with others when troubleshooting a particular problem.
74. Edit Configuration Files
75. Manage Users and Groups
76. Mount Any Filesystem
77. Control Startup Services
78. Build Kernels the Ubuntu Way
79. Back Up Your System
80. Clone an Installation
81. Rescue an Unbootable System
82. Check the Captain's Log
83. Mount Removable Devices with Persistent Names
84. Mount Remote Directories Securely and Easily
85. Make Videos of Your Tech-Support Questions
86. Synchronize Files Across Machines

9. Virtualization and Emulation
This chapter shows you how to run Ubuntu inside of other operating systems, and other operating systems inside of Ubuntu.
87. Run Windows Applications
88. Play Windows Games
89. Run Ubuntu Inside Windows
90. Use Xen to Host Virtual Machines
91. Create an Ubuntu/Xen Virtual Machine
92. Split Your Machine's Personality

10. Small Office/Home Office Server
Ubuntu can be the basis of a server. Thus, this chapter teaches basic server installation plus installing network services such as DNS, mail, Apache, and more.
93. Install and Configure an Ubuntu Server
94. Build a File Server
95. Administer Your Server Remotely
96. Build a Web Server
97. Build an Email Server
98. Build a Caching Proxy Server
99. Build a DHCP Server
100. Build a Domain Name Server

Summary: Find out what the experinced people know
Not surprisingly, this is another lovely addition to the successful 'Hacks' series.

Like the others, 'Ubuntu Hacks' consists of a series of pointers on how to perform useful and usually non-trivial tasks ranging from beginner level through to expert. As you would expect novice users can get more from the book than experienced users, but there is still likely to be plenty to interest people of any skill level.

This book does not suffer from too broad a topic range, as several from the series do. Since it limits coverage to using the Ubuntu Linux distribution, it reduces the number of topics that are not relevant. It is also a very good source for finding out what else is available, so you gain from not only what is presented directly but will be able to use these to accelerate your own knowledge.

This book highlights one of the problems with the 'Hacks' series. 'Ubuntu Hacks' is noticeably larger than other books I have seen from the series, and while the volume is necessary to cover some of the advanced topics I felt that limiting the book to one hundred hacks made some entries very long indeed.

Overall it is a great book, particularly for those of beginner to intermediate level. You can learn Ubuntu by accident, or you can get a real head start using this book.

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Wi-Foo: The Secrets of Wireless Hacking

Publisher: Addison-Wesley Professional
Authors: Andrew Vladimirov Konstantin V. Gavrilenko Andrei A. Mikhailovsky

ISBN: 0321202171
List Price: $39.99
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Avg Cusomer Rating: 5
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Summary: Excellent book
I think everything that needed to be said has been said by Richard. This is an excellent book for those who want to get their hands dirty with Wireless Security. One of the areas in IT that will never die down, not anytime soon at least, is security. IT security is especially HOT right now, and a lot of companies are paying more attention to what they should have years ago. In my home city, Philadelphia, there is a project called Wireless for Philly that is supposed to bring wireless connection to everybody. Now, while people see that as just another development in this great city, I look at it as an opportunity for people who are smart enough to protect this kind of network. This book does the job. I am going to suggest that if you know you are not going to have time to dedicate to this book, don't pick this book up. You're better off! Because if you do pick this book up, it's going to be hard to put it down.

Summary: *The* Source for Wireless Security Information
I was recently given the book Wi-Foo, The Secrets of Wireless Hacking as a present for my birthday, and I have been reading it extensively for the past few days. I have been involved with wireless security for a few years now, giving security talks to members of my community and helping out friends and family stay secure while enjoying the wonderful advantages of wireless computing. Over the past couple of years, I have slowly built up a small reference library of books related to wireless technologies and security. I even got involved in a small antenna building hobby which enabled me to better understand some of the ways RF works.
Upon reading the first few chapters of this book, I realized that this tome was different. The information contained within its pages wasn't a re-hashed compendium of information that could potentially be gathered across the internet and spoon-fed to the reader. In this case, the author brings us along as the many vulnerabilities of wireless computing are brought forward, how those vulnerabilities are exploited by nefarious individuals, and the ever-expanding variety of tools availble to assist in exploiting these vulnerabilities are described.
Don't get the wrong idea here; this isn't the run-of-the-mill Howto put together from various information sources freely available on the internet. The authors take painstaking efforts to explain how the various wireless encryption/security options, such as WEP, WPA, LEAP, TKIP, PSK, etc, work, and how they can be defeated. The tools are not only defined, but described in relation to how they leverage and exploit the vulnerabilities and why they work.
The information within is fresh and very comprehensive. While extensive in its depth, I still believe that this is an ideal book for anyone, from beginner to expert, who has a desire to better understand wireless computing technologies, its advantages and disadvantages, and how to protect oneself from evil-doers, out to take advantage of the stealth that wireless provides.

Summary: Excellent wireless book
this is one of the best books on wireless hacking.

very helpful.

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	Hacking Exposed 5th Edition (Hacking Exposed) Publisher: McGraw-Hill Osborne Media Authors: Stuart McClure Joel Scambray George Kurtz
ISBN: 0072260815 List Price: $49.99 Amazon Price: $31.49 Usually ships in 24 hours Buy this book from amazon.com or from amazon.co.uk	Avg Cusomer Rating: 3 Reviews: Summary: Still solid but redundant and a bit tired I cannot say anything more that other positive reviews have not already said. Simply put, the Hacking Exposed series is THE source. However, it is getting tired and repetitive. Many topics covered in earlier chapters gets repeated AD NAUSEUM in later chapters. Also, I feel this particular book is getting bloated at 750 pages. Hacking is a diverse subject. This book tries to narrow things down, but not enough in my opinion. The authors spread themselves too thin in some areas...thus adding to the page count unnecessarily. To their credit (and I love them dearly for this) they did not take chunks of old material and cut and paste like some other authors do! These guys keep the fresh material coming. My 3 stars would have been 4 or 5 stars if I had seen really great improvements over the previous edition. Summary: Good, but aging The book is not bad, but needs serious rewriting. The "fifth edition" is a joke-it looks more like an attempt to beat some more money out of the book's reputation than a serious release. Some parts of the book are dated and should be left out or rewritten. Half of the URLs mentioned in the book does not work, because the websites have died a long time ago. Some nmap switches described in the text are not usable anymore, because the authors used an old version of nmap. A good deal of the text speaks about Windows NT, which is an OS almost unused today. There is a lot of typos in the book, which is quite unusal for a fifth edition. The HE website lists corrections for the first issue of the book, which is not very useful. That said, I have learned a lot of interesting things from the book. It's a good book if you are trying to get the big picture-if you are looking for in-depth explanations and fresh information, I think you'd better look elsewhere. It's worth reading, I just wouldn't say it's a computer security Bible. Summary: Good overall security reference I recently received my copy of HE5 and despite some shortcomings (i.e. strong material removed from HE4) this book is a great overall security reference. The wireless stuff was a much needed component and although the book targets the latest O/S releases it's got a lot of useful discovery/fingerprinting techniques, including searching the web for sensitive info. Recommended. Summary:

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Hacking for Dummies

Publisher: For Dummies
Authors: Kevin Beaver Stuart McClure

ISBN: 076455784X
List Price: $24.99
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Avg Cusomer Rating: 5
Reviews:
Summary: Great easy-to-understand quick references
This is a great, easy to read and use reference for both non-technical business leaders as well as IT professionals. It is also a great resource for home computer users, and small- to medium-sized businesses who often do not have the resources to hire dedicated security staff. The book covers the entire spectrum of ways in which computer systems can be compromised and attacked, an easy-to-understand description of how the exploits are executed, and, usually lacking in other reference books on this topic, step-by-step instructions for not only how to identify when the hacks occur, but also how to defend against them. Kevin Beaver also includes some very important warnings you need to keep in mind when performing your own vulnerability and hacking tests against your own network and systems to discover your own technical weaknesses.

Summary: GREAT FOR THE UNEXPERIENCED
This book is great for beginners, it talks about the ethical hacker and penetration tests. However it also gives out information that can be used for blackhat hacking. It walks you through a tutorial step by step, and gives out names of some other books that can be helpful. If you have no or little experience this book is for you.

Summary: Real world information for Network Security
Hacking for Dummies sets a foundation for ethical hacking and should be used as more than the proverbial "how to". When reading the pages, try to realize that you are not just learning true methods of attack; you are also gaining valuable information for prevention.
Businesses, red teams, or professional security consultants will find this book as a top 5 reference toward understanding the attack, and a primer in the defense of a network.
For me, a fellow CISSP, Kevin's book rates up there with Eric Cole's "Hackers Beware".

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Google Hacking for Penetration Testers

Publisher: Syngress Publishing
Authors: Johnny Long Ed Skoudis Alrik van Eijkelenborg

ISBN: 1931836361
List Price: $44.95
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Avg Cusomer Rating: 4
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Summary: Best-of-class book at using the power of Google!
Syngress's "Google Hacking for Penetration Testers" (GHPT) by Johnny Long demonstrates to average Joes the power of Google. The author is the authority on how to use Google to recon an intended target. Considering the narrow focus of the subject, the book is able to thoroughly dissect the various tools and weapons Google offers. Certainly, this book is not admitting anything not already known in the hacking world, but the books does provide a valuable asset as a one-stop-shop at using Google.

First and foremost, before scouting a target, you must cover your tracks. GHPT first focuses on anonymity (I was particularly impressed with using Google as a proxy server on page 95). After masking yourself, the book focuses on network mapping, and locating exploitable targets. The book then offers 10 searches to find oodles of information that website owners probably don't want you to have. One chapter is devoted to tips to hunt usernames and passwords. Chapter 12, on automating Google Searches, was particularly valuable to me as I'm an extreme novice at scripting.

The book is written in a very simple, plain-spoken (or, more correctly, plain-written) style. While this book should not be the first book on one's security shelf, the subject cannot be any better defined than this book.

I give this book 4 pings out of 5:
!!!.!

Summary: That is a lot of info!!!
It has everything you NEED to learn how to hack w/ using something as simple as Google. i never in my life would have thought you could get that much server info and vuln. info with just using Google. Johnny knows his stuff and this is a must have if you are a novice hacker that wants to stem-away from the title; "script-kiddie", this book will help you. Thanks to the authors for this great release.

Summary: Nothing great about it!
Reconnaissance, reconnaissance, and some more reconnaissance! That is exactly what this book is all about. I won't recommend any serious reader to buy this book, as it does not benefit you from anything except amuse you with what can you do in your free time sitting in front of a search engine. I doubted the contents of this book even before buying this book, but due to IT consultant by profession, I overlooked my skeptic view and bought it. I have nothing against this book, but this book is addressed to the audience those who are already in IT field, and it does not teach you anything new for which you will shell our forty buck and read over 500 pages.

However, this can be a good book for some reference and to add in your computer room shelf, but it's just overpriced for the contents it has. Don't expect some great new stuff, it is just some stale information which you will find from internet for free anyway, and hey try to Google it!! ;).

I still think this book as hyped one which failed to deliver what it promises.

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	Gray Hat Hacking : The Ethical Hacker's Handbook Publisher: McGraw-Hill Osborne Media Authors: Shon Harris Allen Harper Chris Eagle Jonathan Ness Michael Lester
ISBN: 0072257091 List Price: $49.99 Amazon Price: $31.49 Usually ships in 24 hours Buy this book from amazon.com or from amazon.co.uk	Avg Cusomer Rating: 5 Reviews: Summary: i love GHH i have read tonnes of books on this subject.starting from secrets of a super hacker by knightmare(published way back in 94, trust me dat was a great read n even 2day i find myself glued to da back as the first time i read it.now coming back 2 gray hat hacking.this is wat i would like 2 call the hacking reference book for the next generation.every one concerned about security should consider picking up this book.u might as well save some money n picking up more knowledge than any of the hacking exposed books in the market.no this book is not for button clicking script kiddies who play around wid trojans n claim to be hackers or web defacers(lamers).if u belong to da breed of script kiddies pick up this disgustin book by ankit fadia (oh by the way ive reviewed it).i wouuld liek to congradulate the authors for the outstanding work put into this book.howeever it would be great to see expanded materials on various topics and a little more detail in tool description.its not bad but it could still be better.so as i said before get dis book u wont regret it.so kiddies grow up keep those hacking exposed n ankit fadias books apart throw em in da firplace burn em do anythin .but go get dis one laterzzzzzz Summary: Covers more than the typical hacking book "Gray Hat Hacking - The Ethical Hacker's Handbook" is not your normal hacking book. This book should not be lumped in with the "Hacking Exposed" series nor the likes of "Counter Hack". What differentiates Gray Hat Hacking (GHH) from other books is the amount of code the book offers. This book is not for script kiddies, but instead shows how to advance to the next level of hacking (and, more importantly, prevention) by devoting over 100 pages to developing programming skills for both Linux and Window exploits. I had not encountered a book that dedicated this much space to scripting. The authors take a delicate balance at discussing tools that are well documented in other publications (ettercap, xploit2 & p0f), and mentioning some lesser known tools (sharefuzz, RATS and valgrind). While I believe there is no doubt that the authors know their material, I do agree with other reviewers in wishing GHH was simply expanded. I also like that GHH offers many referrences. Page for page, this book probably received more highlights than any other hacking book I own. I give this book 4 pings out of 5: !!!.! Summary: Great buy for every IT dept. I bought this book from a store in D.C, and read it on my way back to India. I was impressed. Never found any book that deals with computer security and software vulnerabilities written so well. The reason I like this book is than others is because it does not only give you information that can help you in assessing your network security, but also gives you a basic introduction to the laws and legal technicalities. The contents of this book cover most of computer/network security related areas including technical implementation, planning, and defense. Therefore, it is not only for system engineers, but also for people managing IT departments. My favorite chapters were those which discussed about reverse engineering, programming survival skills, and legal aspects of hacking. However, I do agree with one of the reviewers on the definition of "Grey Hat Hackers", I do agree that the authors were wrong here, and should have chosen a different title. Otherwise, the book is great and the reason it has something for everyone who deals with IT security is, because it took five authors to write this book and all of the specializes in different segments of IT security. The book is not expensive, I bought it for $45, and you can get it from Amazon for $33 and believe me that's nothing. I have spent more money on books those have attractive titles but actually are crap. Have a look at those written by Ankit Fadia, and you will know what I mean. Summary:

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Hacking Linux Exposed, Second Edition

Publisher: McGraw-Hill Osborne Media
Authors: Brian Hatch James Lee

ISBN: 0072225645
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Summary: Ding, Ding, We have a winner.
First, this book does _NOT_ have a installation walk through...YES!!!

You will not find another book this comprehensive in the length in HLE has accomplished. i found the book to be on point, and not overdrawn on any specific topic. The authors usage of gender is something of a mystery aswell. For the first 10 chapters or so the cracker is a woman, then in later chapters it becomes a man, then in even later chapters a woman, then back to a man :-).

i found the book to be very well written, it feels like a very good naration. There is only a few plugs of direct humor (1 about using word for the publisher, another about the shortest sentence using all letters) but these few are lightening.

Technically this book is sound. it does very good in keeping the basics of security alive through the book (chattr +i, only use what you need, upgrade, etc...). This is very helpful to a beginer for reinforced learning. The software packages it mentions for firewalls, logging, etc. are very nice and descriptive.

All around great book. BTW, did i mention that is does _NOT_ cover a Linux installation from CD/DVD? That alone should be enough to buy it.

Summary: Must-Read Info For Linux Admins
The Hacking Exposed books have set the bar for this genre of security book. Hacking Linux Exposed - 2nd Edition doesn't fail in meeting that bar as well. If you've read Hacking Exposed - 4th Edition and think this book can't tell you anything you don't already know- think again. For those who administer Linux boxes this book provides an in-depth look at specific hacks and vulnerabilities unique to the Linux operating system and the accompanying fixes and workarounds to protect yourself. The book is overflowing with examples and sample commands that users can immediately put to use to better understand the risks and how to mitigate them. Hacking Exposed is a must-read for security- this book is a must-read for Linux security.

(...)

Summary: Don't have this book? You're BEGGING for trouble...
When I first starting using Linux systems and putting them online I had NO idea what sort of grief I was in for. The reason for that grief: I had NO clue how to 'harden' a system or what that term even meant. By not knowing that I put up systems that were quickly exploited by script kiddies and SPAM houses looking for open relays to use for SPAM and for 'zombies' to use in Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks. I bought this book, read it, and haven't had those problems since. If you are going to do *anything* with Linux on the internet then GET THIS BOOK NOW. Unless, of course, you *want* to have your computers destroyed on a weekly basis...

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Hacker Disassembling Uncovered (Uncovered series)

Publisher: A-List Publishing
Authors: Kris Kaspersky

ISBN: 1931769222
List Price: $39.95
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Avg Cusomer Rating: 5
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Summary: Excellent book, highly recommended!
This book is fantastic- one of a kind, by far :)

Provided you've covered the basics, x86 assembly language- and C++, this book will teach you some of the absolute essential skills required in reversing commercial-level software. This book isn't a toy- it's the real thing, for serious programmers, researchers and experts in the field.

It has a step by step introduction- and builds firmly upon previous chapters- covering various compilers; and how they generate serveral of the common constructs found in Higher Level languages. The section of Virtual Functions is a dime; combined with structures, arrays and many other important elements.

A lot of work has gone into this book, and it definately shows.

One reviewer gave this book a low rating, and claimed- "I had a no luck getting SoftICE to run correctly on Windows XP". That has got nothing to do with the author of the quality of this book. If you searched[..], you'll find there exists several patches you can get to make it run on Windows XP; IDA pro is availible commercially aswell, and dumpbin is provided with Visual Studio.

It's an absolute winner for those wanting to go deeper into the core of computers/software.

Summary: fair intro to disassembly
I give the author credit for a decent intro to disassembly, but it's a difficult path with this book. Expensive tools are assumed to be available (no reference is made to free alternatives), and less than subtle remarks about using these tools to make commercial software "free".

Later chapters do get more in-depth, and more useful.

Summary: Step-by-step
The best part about this book is that besides all of the neat tricks it gives you, the layout is step-by-step. You can sit down with it using the CD and go through each exercise. I have recommended this book to all of my friends/co-workers that are either learning how to protect software they write to how to identify vulnerabilities in other programs. Knowing assembly helps, but this also presents it in a way that you can learn as you go.

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