• Hacking For Dummies, 5th edition – Brand new and more of what it oughta be

    14 Jan 2016

    It’s official – the 5th edition of my book Hacking For Dummies is out!

    Outside of the first edition that was written 13 years ago, this new edition has, by far, the most updates and improvements yet. All based on the mistakes I make and the things I learn in my hands-on work performing independent security vulnerability assessments and penetration tests, I feel like Hacking For Dummies has come of age.

    In this new edition, I have added in new security checks and tools (i.e. Kali Linux) for many of the chapters. I’ve sprinkled in some more coverage on the cloud where necessary as well as updates on security testing methodologies. I also provide links to more (and more current) tools and resources in the appendix. I cover Windows 10 and even some of the latest security controls in Android Lollipop and M as well as iOS 9. I also have a new section on the Internet of Things.

    Perhaps most importantly, I’ve eliminated a lot of the preachiness and references to “ethical” hacking and “hackers” and, instead, have put things more in terms of IT security professionals and security testing programs…It’s security vulnerability assessments and penetration testing as it should be.

    From the get-go, my goal with this book was not to cover every single niche hack that comes out – I’m not that smart and certainly don’t have enough time (or pages) to do so. Instead, my goal is to hit the important areas that are getting so many enterprises into trouble (i.e. the low-hanging
    fruit) as well as to outline the security assessment process from start to finish, i.e. planning things out, understanding the mindset and methodologies all the way through the testing and then follow-up,
    including keeping management on board. I’m not aware of any other book that does this and believe that’s where the real value in all of this is.

    Thanks a ton to Amy and Katie at Wiley for helping making this book happen, long-time friend, Peter Davis, for his most excellent technical edits, and for well-respected IT/security veteran, Richard Stiennon, for writing the new foreword. I couldn’t have done it without your efforts and insight!

    A LOT of sweat equity among many people has gone into Hacking For Dummies, 5th edition. I hope you’ll check it out! I really think you’ll like it.