For the past two and a half years, Ukrainians have been aware of cyber threats like no other. In addition to the full-scale war with the Russians, we are also fighting a cyber war. Something is always happening in the swamps: websites are down, important information is disappearing, services are breaking down, and entire systems are «falling down». We are also fighting off cyberattacks from the Muscovites, sometimes successfully, but not always.
Pluses:
good quality of the publication; interesting and relevant investigation of the most high-profile cyberattacks in history; simple and accessible writing style; many interesting details of well-known events and a lot of facts
Minuses:
too much information and actors, which affects the speed and process of reading; a lot of attention is paid to the United States and its internal «cuisine», which may not be interesting for some people
But this kind of war has been going on for decades, and it did not start here. However, Ukraine and Russia have been involved in the formation of global cyberwars for a long time. The book by the famous American journalist David E. Sanger «The Perfect Weapon tells about the beginning of the cyber age, its formation and development, and various virtual attacks, viruses and cyberattacks. «». It was published in Ukraine by «Astrolabe», I have already read this work, and now I am sharing my impressions.
«»
Author David E. Sanger
Publisher Astrolabe
Language Ukrainian
Number of pages 496
Cover Solid
Year of publication 2022
Size 200×130 mm
Website astrolabium.com.ua
David E. Sanger is a well-known American journalist who has been writing for The New York Times for many years. He started covering cyberwarfare at its very beginning, so he knows it better than anyone else. At least his materials, research, and most importantly, tons of insider information he collected from hundreds of interviews, were enough for this book. And it is a detailed and meticulous study of the history of cyber warfare from the beginning to the present.
«» tells the story of the beginning of cyber warfare, its development, and the present day. The author leads the reader from one high-profile case to another, chewing on every nuance in detail, explaining global features, motives, course of events, and consequences.
For example, the reader will learn about the Stuxnet computer worm, which was developed by the United States together with Israel to successfully attack Iran’s nuclear program. There will also be details about Russia’s interference in the 2016 US presidential election, the global WannaCry cyberattack in 2017, Russia’s cyberattacks on Ukraine and Estonia in 2015, NotPetya, North Korea’s attack on Sony Pictures in 2014. The release of the movie «Interview», the case of Edward Snowden, WikiLeaks, etc.
David E. Sanger compares cyber weapons to nuclear weapons and global warming. Even more so. He says that it has a much more powerful effect, so it must be taken extremely seriously. The enemy may not actually kill a single person, but it can disrupt power plants, water supply, and other important infrastructure facilities, and this will lead to catastrophic consequences.
And most importantly, it will be difficult to prove, and it will cost much less than any real weapons and their use. Also, literally every smartphone, laptop, PC, or smart camera is at risk, so an attack could come from anywhere.
The book pays special attention to the United States and the consequences for this country. Of course, this is logical, since the author is American, but such moments are the most uninteresting, at least for a Ukrainian reader. However, there is a lot of interesting information about Ukraine, about the above-mentioned attacks on our facilities by the Muscovites, about little-known details, about solving these problems, about unexpected cyber responses to the enemy, and other interesting things.
«» — interesting nonfiction that is relatively easy to read. «Relatively» because the book is full of events, people, and a lot of details, and all of this needs to be absorbed quickly enough to move on. On the one hand, the author has done a titanic job and learned a lot of interesting things about the cyber age. On the other hand, he had to dump it all on the reader to reveal the topic and use insider information, data, etc. Therefore, reading «The Perfect Weapon» requires some preparation.
However, this does not mean that the book is difficult to read. On the contrary, for such a multi-layered investigation with a lot of facts, people, and events, the book is relatively simple and accessible. The only problem is the amount of information, but this is the format, so it’s unavoidable.
I would also like to note the quality of the publication. «» is published by «Astrolabe», and I have always liked this publishing house for the high level of its books. This book is no exception. Its style seems to be ascetic, but the pattern is thematic and stylish, so it immediately catches your eye. I didn’t find a single misprint, typo, or anything else like that. We also have a lasso and an easy-to-read medium-sized font.
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