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Hacking Linux Exposed

Issue 89

From Issue #89
September 2001

Sep 01, 2001  By Thomas Osterlie
 in
Hacking Linux Exposed deals with security-related threats to Linux systems.
Conclusion

Hacking Linux Exposed is a good read and a great introduction to computer security on the Linux platform. More than that, it is a great reference work for the more experienced systems administrator. As the authors fairly quickly jump to rather technical material and assume some knowledge of both networking and Linux systems, the book is not ideally suited for the complete Linux neophyte. However, I am of the firm opinion that for a freshman wanting to learn more, the book is perfectly suited as a guide to further reading.

I'm not overly sure I'd recommend the book as a general introduction for those completely new to computer security. For that I'd recommend a book like Hacking Exposed, which is a better all-around introduction to computer security. Don't let the two books' similarities in cover and title fool you. There are major differences between them. The problem with Hacking Exposed is that it's somewhat lacking in the department of Linux-specific solutions. Hacking Linux Exposed amends this. The two books should be considered complementary.

Hacking Linux Exposed is easy to read. The authors have done a very good job of providing an overview of security-related threats to the Linux platform and how best to avoid falling prey to them. As such, I greatly recommend the book to systems administrators and Linux users who want to learn more about how to secure their systems.

The Good/The Bad

Thomas Østerlie (thomas.osterlie@consultit.no) is a consultant with Norwegian-based consulting company ConsultIT A/S, where he works with server-side systems development for UNIX platforms and with computer security.

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