Amazon.co.uk Review
This book is written for system administrators who need to know how to keep their systems secure from unauthorised use. The anonymous author takes a hacker's view of various systems, focusing on how the system can be cracked and how you can secure the vulnerable areas.
The book makes it clear from the outset that you cannot rely on commercial software for security. Some of it is flawed, and even the best of it has to be used correctly to provide even the most basic security measures. The author scrutinises such operating systems as Microsoft Windows, Unix, Novell, and Macintosh. He details many of the tools crackers use to attack the system, including several that have legitimate uses for system administration. Rather than merely cataloguing areas of risk and showing how various flaws can be exploited, the author makes every effort to show how security holes can be avoided and remedied. Maximum Security tells you which software to avoid and then details which security tools are invaluable, providing the URLs necessary to acquire them. An enclosed CD-ROM provides links to many of the tools and resources discussed in the book. The CD-ROM also leads you to several online documents where you can learn more about Internet security in general and specifics for securing your own site. --Elizabeth Lewis, Amazon.com
Product Description
Security continues to be the predominant concern for any organization that is either on the Internet now or considering it. Nary a week passes where there isn't some new report of hackers breaking into computer systems at some government agency, or trashing some Fortune 500 company's Web site, or even stealing user passwords and credit card numbers. In June 1997, this book's first edition immediately shot to the top of several computer security bestseller lists. While undoubtedly some bought the book to learn how to hack, it turns out that the book's most enthusiastic fans were computer security managers who appreciated the book's comprehensive coverage and clear, to-the-point descriptions of the most common techniques hackers use to penetrate systems. The hacking community, however, hasn't stood still. This thoroughly updated edition discusses the hundreds of new computer system holes that have been discovered over the course of the past year, and covers the latest hacker techniques.
by Martin Freiss
by Simson Garfinkel
