Hackers Beware: A Guide to Protect Your PC, Navneet Mehra, Macmillan Publishers India Ltd, Pp 266, Rs 335.00
NO matter in which field one works, one cannot deny the impact of computers and Internet on one’s field of work and on society. It has opened up opportunities that people had dreamt of about only 10 to 15 years ago. But, no matter what technology is discovered, there are always positive and negative aspects to it. The positive aspect is the tremendous business opportunities that have resulted while the negative is the huge security risk that is posed to individuals and even large companies. The problem is companies that have invested large amounts in their infrastructure now realise that their security is not properly built and that they have become vulnerable.
The book explains who a hacker is – he is a person who enjoys exploring the details of the programmable systems and who tries to stretch their capabilities as opposed to most users who prefer to learn only the minimum necessary. A cracker is one who breaks the security of a system and is it any surprise that a hacker is considered a criminal! There is no way to fully protect a network unless one knows what he is up against. By knowing how attackers work and what all the attacker (hacker as he is called) does to compromise a machine, then a person or an organisation can plan on how to protect his or its computers and data.
In any case if you value the data in your computer system, it is useful to read this book as it teaches you to know the rules of the game first and then learn about the hacker’s tactics to be on a safer side at the end. An interesting chapter is the one on practical case studies about the clients in Russia, Vietnam and Serbia.
(Macmillan Publishers India Ltd, 2/10, Ansari Road, Daryaganj, New Delhi-110 002; www.macmillanpublishersindia.com)
