Microsoft KB Archive/11952

Out Of The Inner Circle PSS ID Number: Q11952 Article last modified on 10-13-1986 PSS database name: PRESS

OUT OF THE INNER CIRCLE: A Hacker’s Guide to Computer Security by “The Cracker” (Bill Landreth) Price: $9.95/paper $19.95/cloth Pages: 228 ISBN: 0-914845-36-5 (paper) 0-914845-45-4 (cloth) Publication Date: April 19, 1985

Somewhere between computer nerd and telecommunications prowler sits the hacker. A harmless inquisitor or a high-level telecommunications thief, a hacker is a scientific whiz-kid who diligently and skillfully manipulates computer codes until he gains unauthorized entry into “secure” computer systems. Once there, he may innocently “browse” around and stumble onto top secret information - or he can knowingly cause megabyte/megabuck trouble. OUT OF THE INNER CIRCLE: A Hacker’s Guide to Computer Security is written by “The Cracker” with Howard Rheingold. In real life, “The Cracker” is Bill Landreth, the renowned 19-year-old systems hacker apprehended by the FBI and indicted by a Federal Grand Jury. This long-awaited book on avoiding system incursions features a hacker’s perspective on computer security, and this hacker is one of the masterminds of the Inner Circle, an elite group of computer enthusiasts who made a hobby of penetrating some of the nation’s most protected systems. In OUT OF THE INNER CIRCLE, to be published by Microsoft Press on April 19, 1985, Landreth discusses the subculture of hackers, the ramifications of their infiltrations, and, most importantly, how to stop the epidemic spread of these elusive intruders. “The Cracker” also tells how he was caught tapping into GTE Telenet Corporation’s Telemail electronic-mail system, which serves such security conscious clients as NASA, Raytheon, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, General Motors, Coca-Cola, and many, many more. He details how the FBI abruptly ended his capers, and what he went through once he was caught. This reformed hacker doesn’t glorify his former “colleagues” as heroes of the computer revolution, nor does he view them as harmless kids who can’t break away from their Apples and IBM PCs. Landreth warns that some of these daredevils are electronic geniuses with more than a healthy curiosity, and he advises that no one underestimate their power. Written for systems professionals, computer enthusiasts, and general readers alike, OUT OF THE INNER CIRCLE gives a firsthand profile of the hacker, his goals, and his methods. For system operators who know their systems are being hacked, the book provides a step-by-step method for finding out exactly what mischief the hacker has been up to and how to boot him off. For users who think their information is being tampered with, Landreth describes the unmistakable footprints of a hacker and highlights the telltale signs of the teenage hacker syndrome. In striking detail, Landreth describes the computer hacker mentality and its dangers. To put an end to surprise intrusions, “The Cracker” says mini and mainframe users and operators must begin to think like hackers. At the same time, Landreth cautions, they must rid their systems of common security loopholes - the kind every hacker knows and every user dismisses. He gives practical advice for making systems tamperproof without going to millions, thousands, or even hundreds of dollars of expense. He analyzes the cost effectiveness of external security devices and discusses them in terms of enhancing the in-house steps that can be taken to protect valuable data. As Landreth points out, “… you can do very well being 90 percent hacker-proof. By my estimate, most systems today are only about 40 percent hacker-proof.” OUT OF THE INNER CIRCLE: A Hacker’s Guide to Computer Security paints a vivid picture of electronic espionage, spiced by the insider-insights of the computer whiz who knows all, and finally tells it. Microsoft Corporation, based in Bellevue, Washington, develops and sells a wide range of operating systems, languages, application programs, and hardware products, as well as books, for the microcomputer marketplace.

Copyright Microsoft Corporation 1986.