CD Description

Before presenting this disc, it is necessary to point out once again that hacking is not the same thing as vandalism. Hacking is the demonstration of a natural curiosity and of a desire to understand the surrounding world. Furthermore, hackers and developers of protection mechanisms, antivirus software, firewalls, and intrusion-detection systems are not just opponents; they are also colleagues. Hacking and programming have much in common. Creating high-quality and reliable software requires skills of low-level programming; the ability to work with the operating system, drivers, and equipment; and knowledge of the architecture of contemporary processors and the specific features of code generation typical for specific compilers.

To develop high-quality protection mechanisms, programmers must have at least a general idea about the working methods and technical tools used by their opponents. To master this technical arsenal at a level no lower than that of the opponent is even better. It is impossible to write secure and reliable code without knowing what buffer overflow errors, security holes, and vulnerabilities are, and how hackers exploit them. It is impossible to write a high-quality antivirus scanner without knowing the structure of worms and viruses, as well as methods of their propagation. Developing a high-quality firewall or intrusion-detection system is equally impossible without knowing the methods used by intruders for their attack. Thus, practical experience in the field of hacking is highly desirable because it allows security specialists to study the tactics and strategy of the offensive party carefully , thus allowing the organization of an optimal defense. It simply allows the programmer to detect and reinforce the most probable targets for hacker attacks, and concentrate the maximum available intellectual resources on them. This means that the developers of security systems must be inspired by hacker psychology and start thinking like hackers.

The companion CD supplied with this book contains the source code and compiled files of all programs provided in this book, illustrations, and useful utilities.

CAUTION! Most antivirus scanners would recognize certain files supplied on this CD as viruses. And these actually are fragments of worms and viruses, because serious antivirus researchers need to have the same resources that the virus writers do. This is necessary to understand how viruses work and what works to counteract them. Although all possible care has been taken to ensure that these viruses are free from a harmful payload (which means that they won't carry out any dangerous or destructive actions), please use this information responsibly and quarantine your software lab properly before running any tests.

Directory naming conventions on the disc correspond to the naming conventions used in the book. The contents of this CD are as follows :

• The kit directory contains demonstration files for Chapter 24 , dedicated to various methods of bypassing firewalls and detecting such attacks. These exploits are intended for checking whether your system is vulnerable and are not intended for unauthorized attacks!

• The src directory contains the source code for all examples provided in the book, as well as compiled files.

• The pic directory contains color illustrations for all chapters of this book.