Network Security Hacks (2nd Edition)
Author: Andrew Lockhart
Pages: 478
Publisher: O’Reilly
ISBN: 0596527632
Introduction
O’Reilly’s Hacks Series has been a major hit with the IT crowd. It covers basically anything a geek might be interested in: operating systems, online services, programming languages, astronomy, TiVo, gaming, podcasting, Google, security, and much more. The book we’re taking a look at today has received a second edition and deals with network security.
About the author
Andrew Lockhart currently works at a Fortune 100 company when not writing. In his free time he works on Snort-Wireless, a project intended to add wireless intrusion detection to Snort.
Inside the book
Instead of focusing on one tool, technology or technique, this book delivers a mix of what the author deems to be very important for anyone dealing with network security. The book comes with 125 security techniques that teach you, each in its own way, how to defend yourself from a form of attack. Lockhart introduces a variety of security tools that should be a valuable addition to your security arsenal.
The title is divided into 12 chapters and covers a lot of ground. You start with UNIX and Windows host security, learn about privacy, firewalling, encryption, wireless security, logging, monitoring, secure tunnels, network intrusion detection as well as recovery and response.
The book comes with a variety of code and an abundance of screenshots. The typical layout that also comes with the rest of the Hacks Series uses clever typography and makes the title very easy to browse and find what you need fast. This is definitely one of those books you’ll want close to your desk as you’ll be using it often.
Both UNIX and Windows users get their money’s worth and we believe that having information about the “other operating system” can always come in handy. Keep in mind that prior knowledge is definitely required, and you can’t expect to grasp all the details if you’re just starting to learn about network security.
Final thoughts
After you go through the second edition of Network Security Hacks, you’ll see it’s a very compelling book that will provide you with a wealth of useful information. O’Reilly has once again delivered a quality publication well worth a read.