Ghost in the Wires

My Adventures as the World’s Most Wanted Hacker

By Kevin Mitnick

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About the book

Kevin Mitnick tells his own story of breaking into the computers and networks of major companies, among them Pacific Bell, Motorola and Sun Microsystems, and of staying ahead of the authorities through phone switches and cellular networks. For him hacking was not only a technical feat but an old-fashioned confidence game, relying on guile and deception to talk people out of valuable information. As the FBI closed in he went on the run, living under false identities, holding jobs at a hospital and a law firm, and keeping watch on the people hunting him. He tells the story as a former hacker turned security consultant. The memoir reached the New York Times best seller list.

Security strategist Richard Bejtlich of TaoSecurity praised it as a cut above Mitnick's earlier collaborations and gave it five stars. Self-taught web developer Nick Janetakis, who went to 2600 meetings around the time of Mitnick's arrest, planned to read it, saying that in the end he mainly wanted to be entertained by the stories.

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This book has 3 recommendations

Nick Janetakis (Founder/NickJanetakis.com)

I'm going to start reading Ghost in the Wires by Kevin Mitnick this week. I used to go to 2600 meetings back when he was arrested for wire fraud and other hacking related shenanigans in the mid 1990s. I'm fascinated by things like social engineering and language in general. In the end, I just want to be entertained by his stories. For someone who is into computer programming, a book like this is pretty close to porn!

Recommended by Antonio Eram (Founder & CEO/NETOPIA mobilPay)

Source: Antonio Eram, Founder of NETOPIA mobilPay, Shares the Books that Help Him Change, Rediscover, Reshape

Richard Bejtlich (Strategist/TaoSecurity)

In 2002 I reviewed Kevin Mitnick's first book, The Art of Deception. In 2005 I reviewed his second book, The Art of Intrusion. I gave both books four stars. Mitnick's newest book, however, with long-time co-author Bill Simon, is a cut above their previous collaborations and earns five stars.

As far as I can tell (and I am no Mitnick expert, despite reading almost all previous texts mentioning him), this is the real deal. Mitnick addresses just about everything you might want to know about. For me, the factor that made the book very unique was the authors' attention to detail. This sounds like it might have been a point of contention between the co-authors, but I found the methodical explanation of the social engineering and technical attacks to be relevant and interesting. Mitnick just doesn't say he social engineered a target; rather, he walks you through every step of the event! It's amazing, audacious, and in many cases beyond the pale. [...]

Ghost in the Wires also shares the human side of Mitnick's story. His description of solitary confinement and his anxiety of returning to those conditions seemed very real. They appear ever more relevant given recent treatment of Bradley Manning. One has to wonder about "cruel and unusual punishment" of those who are not convicted, such that they will sign plea deals just to avoid solitary confinement. Beyond prison issues, Mitnick's love for his family (especially his mother and grandmother) were clear throughout the book.

I very much enjoyed reading Ghost in the Wires, and I believe the majority of the computer security community would too.

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