10 Must-Read Books On Hacking And Defense Security!

Hacking is an art that requires significant in depth knowledge of everything that abounds the digital world. Hacking is not a simple task and one needs to be a good programmer, an adept reader, and have a logical mind frame to be successful in hacking. Without proper resources and the skill set, hacking can be quite an ordeal especially for newbies. However, the internet is full of wonderful books that will teach you all the tricks of the trade and more.

1.Hacking Exposed 7: Network Security Secrets & Solutions

Bolster your system’s security and defeat the tools and tactics of cyber-criminals with expert advice and defense strategies from the world-renowned Hacking Exposed team. Case studies expose the hacker’s latest devious methods and illustrate field-tested remedies. Find out how to block infrastructure hacks, minimise advanced persistent threats, neutralise malicious code, secure web and database applications, and fortify UNIX networks.

2.Unauthorised Access: Physical Penetration Testing For IT Security Teams

Featuring a Foreword written by world-renowned hacker Kevin D. Mitnick and lead author of The Art of Intrusion and The Art of Deception, this book is the first guide to planning and performing a physical penetration test. Inside, IT security expert Wil Allsopp guides you through the entire process from gathering intelligence, getting inside, dealing with threats, staying hidden (often in plain sight), and getting access to networks and data.

3.Metasploit: The Penetration Tester's Guide

The Metasploit Framework makes discovering, exploiting, and sharing vulnerabilities quick and relatively painless. But while Metasploit is used by security professionals everywhere, the tool can be hard to grasp for first-time users. Metasploit: The Penetration Tester's Guide fills this gap by teaching you how to harness the Framework and interact with the vibrant community of Metasploit contributors.

4.The Web Application Hacker's Handbook: Discovering and Exploiting Security Flaws

This book is a practical guide to discovering and exploiting security flaws in web applications. The authors explain each category of vulnerability using real-world examples, screen shots and code extracts. The book is extremely practical in focus, and describes in detail the steps involved in detecting and exploiting each kind of security weakness found within a variety of applications such as online banking, e-commerce and other web applications.

5.BackTrack 5 Wireless Penetration Testing Beginner's Guide

Written in Packt’s Beginner’s Guide format, you can easily grasp the concepts and understand the techniques to perform wireless attacks in your lab. Every new attack is described in the form of a lab exercise with rich illustrations of all the steps associated. You will practically implement various attacks as you go along. If you are an IT security professional or a security consultant who wants to get started with wireless testing with Backtrack, or just plain inquisitive about wireless security and hacking, then this book is for you.

6.The Basics of Hacking and Penetration Testing: Ethical Hacking and Penetration Testing Made Easy (Syngress Basics Series)

The Basics of Hacking and Penetration Testing serves as an introduction to the steps required to complete a penetration test or perform an ethical hack. You learn how to properly utilise and interpret the results of modern day hacking tools; which are required to complete a penetration test. Tool coverage will include, Backtrack Linux, Google, Whois, Nmap, Nessus, Metasploit, Netcat, Netbus, and more.

7.A Bug Hunter's Diary: A Guided Tour Through the Wilds of Software Security

A Bug Hunter's Diary follows security expert Tobias Klein as he tracks down and exploits bugs in some of the world's most popular software, like Apple's iOS, the VLC media player, web browsers, and even the Mac OS X kernel. In this one-of-a-kind account, you'll see how the developers responsible for these flaws patched the bugs—or failed to respond at all.

8.Social Engineering: The Art of Human Hacking

From elicitation, pretexting, influence and manipulation all aspects of social engineering are picked apart, discussed and explained by using real world examples, personal experience and the science behind them to unraveled the mystery in social engineering.

9.Low Tech Hacking: Street Smarts for Security Professionals

Low Tech Hacking focuses on the everyday hacks that, while simple in nature, actually add up to the most significant losses. Attackers are using common techniques like social engineering, wireless hacking, and targeting and surveillance to gain access to valuable data. This book contains detailed descriptions of potential threats and vulnerabilities, many of which the majority of the information systems world may be unaware.

10.The Best of 2600: A Hacker Odyssey

Since 1984, the quarterly magazine 2600 has provided fascinating articles for readers who are curious about technology. Find the best of the magazine’s writing in Best of 2600: A Hacker Odyssey, a collection of the strongest, most interesting, and often most controversial articles, all from a hacker’s perspective. Included are stories about the creation of the infamous tone dialer “red box” that allowed hackers to make free phone calls from payphones, the founding of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and the insecurity of modern locks.