December 02, 2005, 4:09 PM — Here are some infosec and related books you might consider or rule out. I've given each book a ranking - with four stars being the best.
Security and Usability
By Lorrie Faith Cranor, Simson Garfinkel
O'Reilly
$44.95
***
This book is a good insight into the ideas behind instilling usability and security into products and processes of the future. It's more policy and insight than technical detail. It would make an excellent holiday gift for a product manager or security/software architect. The graphics are well used and the text is very frank and easily understandable.
Stealing The Network: How to Own an Identity
By Timothy Mullen, Ryan Russell, Riley (Caezar) Eller, Jeff Moss, Jay Beale, Johnny Long, Chris Hurley, Tom Parker, Brian Hatch
Syngress
$39.95
****
The Stealing the Network series has been well received and is a great way to spend an evening or a trip to the beach. Written in a very adventurous style, the book contains fictional stories with real-life technical details and insights. The reader can easily learn about identity creation, identity theft and all kinds of tricks used today. While the writing can be a bit choppy due to the myriad of writers and styles, the book is very easy to read for the most part.
Inside Network Perimeter Security, Second Edition
By Lenny Zeltser, Karen Kent, Stephen Northcutt, Ronald Ritchey, Scott Winters.
$49.99
**
While this is a very technical book with a plethora of knowledge on firewall, router, IDS and perimeter security - it does seem to be a bit aged. With the current focus shifting to asset-centric security, the book seems out of touch. The details are very deep, if not overly technical for all but the deepest diving technicians, and the topics are well covered. It would be useful for exam prep and reference, but not very useful at all for an easy to remember read.
Ending Spam
By Jonathan A. Zdziarski
No Starch Press
$39.95
*
This book reads like a doctorate-level thesis. It is full of mathematical equations and arcane knowledge about spam, spam filters and language analysis. Unless you are planning to write your own spam filtering software, this book is of little use. Average users will find little here that they can apply. Even admins, who the book is targeted towards, will find little here. Few simple processes for deploying and managing spam filters and tools are given - while details about spam analysis and filter software tricks are fully explained.
Ship It!
By Jared Richardson, Will Gwaltney
Pragmatic Bookshelf
$29.95
****
Reading more like an interview with a group of effective managers, this is a tome of wisdom and insight. If you have to manage a group that ships software or computer projects, this book is full of the stuff you need to make it happen. It took years for the authors to learn and they communicate it in less than 200 pages. Insights like how to handle testing, difficult engineers and new features that break things are all included along with a myriad of others. Great reading and valuable knowledge - this book is fantastic!
CISSP Study Guide, Third Edition
By James Michael Stewart, Ed Tittel, Mike Chapple
Wiley/Sybex
$69.99
***
A hefty 750+ pages makes this a heavy duty read indeed. The book covers the topics and knowledge needed to pass the CISSP exam in very nice detail. Packed with explanations and sample quizzes, this is a very popular book for exam takers. The book is written in a usable format and in everyday language - making it a very good investment.
Linux Firewalls, Third Edition
By Steve Suehring, Robert Ziegler
Novell Press
$49.99
***
This book is an excellent reference manual for building and managing firewalls in Linux. If your organization is looking to deploy Linux systems for security tools, the insights here will be very helpful. From creation of the firewall system, installation, management, troubleshooting and such to incident handling and basic investigation techniques - it's all here.
Write Portable Code
By Brian Hook
No Starch Press
$34.95
***
