About This Title

Pages: 132
Published: February 2019
ISBN: 9781680506341
In Print

Practical Security

Simple Practices for Defending Your Systems

by Roman Zabicki

Most security professionals don’t have the words “security” or “hacker” in their job title. Instead, as a developer or admin you often have to fit in security alongside your official responsibilities — building and maintaining computer systems. Implement the basics of good security now, and you’ll have a solid foundation if you bring in a dedicated security staff later. Identify the weaknesses in your system, and defend against the attacks most likely to compromise your organization, without needing to become a trained security professional.

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Computer security is a complex issue. But you don’t have to be an expert in all the esoteric details to prevent many common attacks. Attackers are opportunistic and won’t use a complex attack when a simple one will do. You can get a lot of benefit without too much complexity, by putting systems and processes in place that ensure you aren’t making the obvious mistakes. Secure your systems better, with simple (though not always easy) practices.

Plan to patch often to improve your security posture. Identify the most common software vulnerabilities, so you can avoid them when writing software. Discover cryptography — how it works, how easy it is to get wrong, and how to get it right. Configure your Windows computers securely. Defend your organization against phishing attacks with training and technical defenses.

Make simple changes to harden your system against attackers.

What You Need

You don’t need any particular software to follow along with this book. Examples in the book describe security vulnerabilities and how to look for them. These examples will be more interesting if you have access to a code base you’ve worked on. Similarly, some examples describe network vulnerabilities and how to detect them. These will be more interesting with access to a network you support.

Resources

Releases:

  • P1.0 2019/02/13

Contents & Extracts

  • Acknowledgments
  • Introduction
    • Who Is This Book For?
    • What’s in This Book
    • Online Resources
  • Patching excerpt
    • Upgrading Third-Party Libraries and Software
    • Library Inventory
    • Network Inventory
    • Patching Windows
    • Finding Published Vulnerabilities
    • Testing Your Patches
    • If Patching Hurts, Do It More Often
    • A Practical Application of Fear
    • What’s Next?
  • Vulnerabilities
    • SQL Injection
    • Cross-Site Scripting (XSS)
    • Cross-Site Request Forgery (XSRF)
    • Misconfiguration
    • Suggested Reading
    • What’s Next?
  • Cryptography excerpt
    • Don’t Roll Your Own Crypto
    • Don’t Use Low-Level Crypto Libraries
    • Evaluating Crypto Libraries Without Being a Crypto Expert
    • Password Storage
    • Storing Passwords When You’re the Client
    • Minimizing the Cost of Credential Loss
    • Keeping Passwords Hard to Predict
    • TLS Configuration
    • What’s Next?
  • Windows
    • Windows Users
    • Login and Mimikatz
    • Password Policy
    • Active Directory: What Else Is It Good For?
    • BitLocker
    • What’s Next?
  • Phishing
    • Types of Phishing Attacks
    • Social Defense
    • Don’t DIY
    • DNS-Based Defense
    • Authentication-Based Defense
    • In-Application Defense
    • Got Phished. Now What?
    • Wrapping Up

Author

Roman Zabicki works at Stripe as a member of the application security team. He has a BA in computer science from the University of Chicago. He’s a lifelong Chicagoan and lives in Chicago with his wife, Marnie, and their children.

eBook Formats:

  • PDF for desktop/tablets

  • epub for Apple Books, e-readers

  • mobi for Kindle readers

Get all eBook formats here for $18.95 (USD)

Add to Cart we accept visa, mastercard, amex, discover, paypal


Paperback Formats:

Please support indie bookstores!
Find indie bookstores in the U.S. Find indie bookstores around the world.

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About This Title

Pages: 132
Published: February 2019
ISBN: 9781680506341
Edition: 1
In Print