Rating: 
Summary: A Godsend for those wishing to avoid (maybe) the snares...
Review: This book is an absolute "tour-de-force". Not only has the author provided the most complete history of recent (90's) cybercrime and well-informed analysis of the costs to society (and us cyber-consumers!), but he manages to do it with style, movement and even a touch of sardonic humor.The deep analysis and constant eye towards the "human factor" in cybercrime is powerful and important. The extent to which psychology and organizational behavior guide the development of cybercrime and the sadly "Keystone"-like countermeasures of the majority of organizational cyber-cops/marks is an important lesson. In Chapters 10 and 11, for example, we get a close look at how human frailties and organizational hubris/naivete leave even "techno-savvy" organizations open to massive, needless losses. HR departments around the country should take heart; there will be many off-site training sessions in the offing if corporate America is to secure itself, and slick new hardware/software represent only a fraction of what it's going to take. When the book moves into the Global and Governmental arena, the full scope becomes almost overwhelming. Luckily the author keeps it moving quickly and presents the information with remarkable clarity/economy given the sheer range of material he's putting together. This book may not absolutely keep you out of the tangled-web, but at least you'll have some idea of where the stickier strands in your neighborhood are and how to *just maybe* avoid them. The critical review of the role of the (largely clueless and unknowing) media in the reportage of cybercrime is very welcome. Popular myths and misconceptions have got to go if this problem is to be properly illuminated and addressed.
Rating:
Summary: Underworld of cyberspace
Review: This is a great book! I didn't know much about digital crime, just what I'd read about the Love Bug and things like that. But I couldn't put this book down! It talks about the mind of the computer criminal and why people do things like break into computer systems and cause damage, and it tells you how much damage all this costs. But the best parts of the book are where it describes actual computer crime cases, like the one where the Russian broke into the bank and stole millions of dollars, using computers. It also tells you about cases of identity theft and espionage and computer warfare. What I also liked is that it gives you lots of sources where you can find out more about computer crime, and it includes the laws that apply to these kinds of crimes. I can't recommend it highly enough.
Rating: 
Summary: Really good book to give a manager
Review: This is a really good book to give a manager. It tells stories of what happens when you don't do security right without getting too technical.
Rating: 
Summary: Good resources but just okay......
Review: This really is the "topic du jour" and it clearly is an important one, but like some of the other readers I found Schneier's book (Secrets & Lies) to be much more informative, both for senior managers and those involved in the day-to-day issues. For most of the book I got the feeling I was being lectured by a security guard explaining a lot of the concepts, and I found some of the fiscal impact figures to be sketchy at best. I think the proof of this is the readjustment of the demonstrable financial impact when persuing court cases - these numbers tend to be a fraction of those presented within the text. If one knows nothing on the subject and wants to hear "the inside scoop" on a number of news stories, it is an okay start. To my mind, the best part of the book were the appendices and the references to other resources throughout the book - those other resources are a lot more valuable than the text in the book itself.
Rating:
Summary: A real eye opener on Digital weakness
Review: True to its title, this book is something of a tangle of news stories about information security breaches back to the Morris Worm. If you want a history book with reasonably succinct info about most of the major US infosec news stories, this is for you. If, however, you're looking for some deeper analysis, maybe something on trends and updates (i.e. after the news headlines have died down, what happened to the victim companies?), or anything much outside of the US, I wouldn't bother.... END
Rating: 
Summary: Tangled ... as in a plate of spagetti
Review: True to its title, this book is something of a tangle of news stories about information security breaches back to the Morris Worm. If you want a history book with reasonably succinct info about most of the major US infosec news stories, this is for you. If, however, you're looking for some deeper analysis, maybe something on trends and updates (i.e. after the news headlines have died down, what happened to the victim companies?), or anything much outside of the US, I wouldn't bother.... END
| 
