Forwarded from: "Rob, grandpa of Ryan, Trevor, Devon & Hannah" <rslade@private> BKSTNHOC.RVW 20040721 "Stealing the Network: How to Own a Continent", Ryan Russell, 2004, 1-931836-05-1, U$49.95/C$69.95 %E Ryan Russell BlueBoar@private %C 800 Hingham Street, Rockland, MA 02370 %D 2004 %G 1-931836-05-1 %I Syngress Media, Inc. %O U$49.95/C$69.95 781-681-5151 fax: 781-681-3585 www.syngress.com %O http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1931836051/robsladesinterne http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/1931836051/robsladesinte-21 %O http://www.amazon.ca/exec/obidos/ASIN/1931836051/robsladesin03-20 %P 402 p. %T "Stealing the Network: How to Own a Continent" This book is fiction (more a series of short stories or scenarios than a novel), but, like Winn Schwartau's "Pearl Harbor Dot Com" (cf. BKPRHRDC.RVW, and "Terminal Compromise" before it, BKTRMCMP.RVW), the authors intend the book to be taken as a serious addition to security literature. Chapter one is basically about hiding and paranoia. The central character seems to be using a considerable amount of money to hide while setting up some kind of crime, and then abandons everything. The points in regard to ensuring computers and data are unrecoverable are interesting, and probably workable. The more important aspects of the plot which involve creating a team, employing cutouts, and disappearing are left almost completely undetailed. If, therefore, we are supposed to learn anything either about crime, or how to detect or prevent it, the content and information simply aren't there. The claim that the "technology" is real, and would work, is unverifiable because we haven't had any technology yet. (The writing is edgy, interesting, and mostly readable. However, it's also difficult and confused in places.) The story continues, via another character (two, actually) in chapter two. This time the technical aspects are more detailed (and fairly realistic) although the community factors are questionable (and the story has some important gaps). (I can personally vouch for the fact that the description of the physical attributes of that specific hotel are bang on, although the ... umm ... social amenities are not.) An "Aftermath" section is at the end of every chapter. In some instances the segment provides a little advice on detecting the attacks described in the story, but this is by no means true in all cases. Nothing much is added in chapter three: a wireless network is penetrated for a second time. Man-in-the-middle attacks, some IP, and UNIX cracking are added in chapter four, phone phreaking in five, and sniffing and rootkits in six. Chapters seven and eight describe software analysis and exploits. Malware is used in chapter nine, although there are the usual unresolved problems with directing attacks and limiting spread. The lack of particulars on the intent of the attack makes the chapter quite perplexing. As with any volume where multiple authors work on separate chapters, the quality of the writing varies. (That the authors did strive together on the overall plot is evident from a few subtle ties between different stories. An appendix lists some of the discussion in this regard: for those interested in the process of writing and collaboration it is an interesting piece in its own right.) One specific point is that a few sections have very stilted dialogue. Overall, most of the book is readable as fiction, although it is hardly thriller level plotting. Since it is fiction, the story has to be a story, and interesting, and therefore contain elements that are not related to the technology under examination. It is difficult to draw the line between not enough and too much, but the authors do seem to have included an awful lot of material that is unimportant either to the security functions or to the plot. A number of these digressions are simply confusing. The characters used in the stories are frequently stereotypes, although not always of the same type. (I was very amused by the note that the book attempted to remain true to geek culture, including "swearing, boorishness, and allusions to sex without there being any actual sex.") If you watch a lot of movies with somewhat technical themes you can recognize where quite a number of personae come from. Basic editing is the province of the publisher rather than the author(s), but it must be noted that spelling, grammatical, and typographical errors are surprisingly common. Not enough to be a real annoyance, but a proper copy edit would have improved the book quite a bit. This book is certainly interesting enough (albeit rather disjointed) as fiction, and technical enough for everyone tired of the usual Hollywood view of computers. The security risks noted are real, and therefore a read through the book could be used to alert non- specialists to a number of security issues and vulnerabilities (although you'd hardly want to use it for training). I enjoyed it and I think it's got a place, although I'm having difficulty in defining where that place is. copyright Robert M. Slade, 2004 BKSTNHOC.RVW 20040721 ====================== (quote inserted randomly by Pegasus Mailer) rslade@private slade@private rslade@private Economics is extremely useful as a form of employment for economists. - John Kenneth Galbraith http://victoria.tc.ca/techrev or http://sun.soci.niu.edu/~rslade _________________________________________ Open Source Vulnerability Database (OSVDB) Everything is Vulnerable - http://www.osvdb.org/
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