Ghost in the Wires: My Adventures as the World's Most Wanted Hacker
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- Create Date：2021-06-07 09:56:55
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Kevin D. Mitnick
- ISBN：0316212180
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
Kevin Mitnick was the most elusive computer break-in artist in history。 He accessed computers and networks at the world's biggest companies--and however fast the authorities were， Mitnick was faster， sprinting through phone switches， computer systems， and cellular networks。 He spent years skipping through cyberspace， always three steps ahead and labeled unstoppable。 But for Kevin， hacking wasn't just about technological feats-it was an old fashioned confidence game that required guile and deception to trick the unwitting out of valuable information。Driven by a powerful urge to accomplish the impossible， Mitnick bypassed security systems and blazed into major organizations including Motorola， Sun Microsystems， and Pacific Bell。 But as the FBI's net began to tighten， Kevin went on the run， engaging in an increasingly sophisticated cat and mouse game that led through false identities， a host of cities， plenty of close shaves， and an ultimate showdown with the Feds， who would stop at nothing to bring him down。Ghost in the Wires is a thrilling true story of intrigue， suspense， and unbelievable escape， and a portrait of a visionary whose creativity， skills， and persistence forced the authorities to rethink the way they pursued him， inspiring ripples that brought permanent changes in the way people and companies protect their most sensitive information。About the AuthorKevin Mitnick， the world's most famous （former） computer hacker， has been the subject of countless news and magazine articles， the idol of thousands of would-be hackers， and a one-time "most wanted" criminal of cyberspace， on the run from the bewildered Feds。 Now a security consultant， he has spoken to audiences at conventions around the world， been on dozens of major national TV and radio shows， and even testified in front of Congress。 He is the author of The Art of Deception and The Art of Intrusion。Co-author William Simon is a bestselling co-author of numerous books， including iCon （the biography
Reviews
Jacob Georg Naur
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"Do you have any experience with phones， Mitnick？" the supervisor asked。"Not too much，" I said。 "I know how to plug it into a jack。 I am a quick learner。" "Do you have any experience with phones， Mitnick？" the supervisor asked。"Not too much，" I said。 "I know how to plug it into a jack。 I am a quick learner。" 。。。more
Fatma Mahmoud Ali
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This one is a bit tedious 。。 the stories are not that funny 。。 If someone did this to me I'd be really pissed This one is a bit tedious 。。 the stories are not that funny 。。 If someone did this to me I'd be really pissed 。。。more
Becka
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Brilliant， although he is a total narcissist。
radhika morabia
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3。5 stars rounded up to 4。This book is 。。。pretty good。 It's hard to follow the technical parts and the names （and from the acknowledgements， you can tell the co-author agrees with me！）。 The tech that Kevin is hacking is just so outdated that even after reading this 400 page book about hacking phone companies， I have no idea what a phone switch is or how Kevin got free phone calls。The second half is wildly better than the first half and I recommend sticking it out。 The fun really starts when Kevi 3。5 stars rounded up to 4。This book is 。。。pretty good。 It's hard to follow the technical parts and the names （and from the acknowledgements， you can tell the co-author agrees with me！）。 The tech that Kevin is hacking is just so outdated that even after reading this 400 page book about hacking phone companies， I have no idea what a phone switch is or how Kevin got free phone calls。The second half is wildly better than the first half and I recommend sticking it out。 The fun really starts when Kevin starts going on the run and evading the FBI。 The phone phreaker stuff from when he was very young is confusing and mildly interesting at best。 Regardless， I had a good time。 It was good。 It just wasn't great， although I'm having a hard time figuring out how to make a book of this nature great。 。。。more
Justina Viržikauskaitė
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Started with a lot of expectations for this book and I got to say - I was a little disappointed。 Each hacking job （even the smallest） is written in the book so detailed， that for a reader it means a LOT of repetitiveness。
Cornelia
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The story is dragging a bit in the beginning， but it quickly picks up steam， and I couldn't stop reading。 It is really well written， the author is very detailed and a bit nerdy when it comes to telephone。。。stuff， which I didn't know much about， so definitely came out of this smarter。 Besides， it is a flashback to my childhood and youth， where technology was still in its infancy。 All in all: A great read， which I very much enjoyed， and would recommend to anyone wanting to know more about while-co The story is dragging a bit in the beginning， but it quickly picks up steam， and I couldn't stop reading。 It is really well written， the author is very detailed and a bit nerdy when it comes to telephone。。。stuff， which I didn't know much about， so definitely came out of this smarter。 Besides， it is a flashback to my childhood and youth， where technology was still in its infancy。 All in all: A great read， which I very much enjoyed， and would recommend to anyone wanting to know more about while-collar-crimes， social engineering， and/or just being entertained by a crime story without a drop of blood。 。。。more
Rosana Ramos
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amazing！！！
Juha Suokas
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Awesome autobiography！ Mitnick's story of his years long adventure to evade the FBI feels at some points almost unreal。 The hacks and social engineering tricks he manages to pull through are just mind-boggling。 The events in the book mostly occur in the early years of the internet， so some of the hacks and tricks do feel very naive and simple with today's standards。Highly recommended for anyone interested in IT security or social engineering！ A word of warning though: The book contains a lot of Awesome autobiography！ Mitnick's story of his years long adventure to evade the FBI feels at some points almost unreal。 The hacks and social engineering tricks he manages to pull through are just mind-boggling。 The events in the book mostly occur in the early years of the internet， so some of the hacks and tricks do feel very naive and simple with today's standards。Highly recommended for anyone interested in IT security or social engineering！ A word of warning though: The book contains a lot of technical terminology， so you might end up browsing wikipedia rather often while reading。 。。。more
Harry Harman
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If you ever wanted to feel like James Bond， Edward Snowden， or Frank Abagnale， then you are in for a treat with this one！
Ke Yu
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Interesting story， but writing itself wants style and substances
Justine
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This book was interesting enough。 It was recommended by my manager， and does give a good background on early cyber security intrusion techniques。 As a book partially useful for work， since my job is cyber security， I enjoyed it！ The heist vibes were also very fun。 The only thing I really didn’t like was Kevin Mitnick’s narrative style。 It feels a little ooo look at me I’m so cool， but also at the same time boohoo feel sorry for me and honestly it annoyed me enough that I had to take breaks from This book was interesting enough。 It was recommended by my manager， and does give a good background on early cyber security intrusion techniques。 As a book partially useful for work， since my job is cyber security， I enjoyed it！ The heist vibes were also very fun。 The only thing I really didn’t like was Kevin Mitnick’s narrative style。 It feels a little ooo look at me I’m so cool， but also at the same time boohoo feel sorry for me and honestly it annoyed me enough that I had to take breaks from this book。 He’s just so unsympathetic as a perspective that it takes so much away from the book。 All in all， cool stories， baaaad narrator。 。。。more
Jacob Reed
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Fascinating stories and subject matter of you can stomach the braggy unreliability of the narrator。 Lots of casual misogyny and white male privilege。 Any vulnerability or remorse feels tacked on by the ghostwriter。
George
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It started at a very young age， finding ways to fiddle pay-phones， find ways to validate bus-ride tickets and the like， and doing them very well。 The guy clearly had an addiction problem with hacking， but his skills were supernatural。 He just couldn't leave the straight and narrow， or consider the potential consequences， for the challenge of breaking into secure networks， stealing source code for the likes of highly confidential development operating systems and such。 So it became a slippery slo It started at a very young age， finding ways to fiddle pay-phones， find ways to validate bus-ride tickets and the like， and doing them very well。 The guy clearly had an addiction problem with hacking， but his skills were supernatural。 He just couldn't leave the straight and narrow， or consider the potential consequences， for the challenge of breaking into secure networks， stealing source code for the likes of highly confidential development operating systems and such。 So it became a slippery slope and an endless contest between him and the FBI， who it's not a good idea to taunt， or shake off when they've got your scent。 His ability to create new identities for himself were also amazing。 All in all a very exciting read for those interested in this genre。 Thoroughly recommended。 But it's worth pointing out， hacking is highly illegal and comes with very serious consequences。 Also bear in mind， the ability of authorities to identify hackers through their miscreant activities have improved dramatically since this book was written。 So beware！ 。。。more
Tolu Olatunbosun
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A pretty incredible account of the rise and fall of Kevin Mitnick's hacking experiences， and how this passion gave him a career， anguish， and a passion so fervent he wouldn't relent after being censured for his illegal hacking exploits。 It details the love of his life， how his friends were involved， his mother's influence on him， and far more。 I'd certainly read this again。 A pretty incredible account of the rise and fall of Kevin Mitnick's hacking experiences， and how this passion gave him a career， anguish， and a passion so fervent he wouldn't relent after being censured for his illegal hacking exploits。 It details the love of his life， how his friends were involved， his mother's influence on him， and far more。 I'd certainly read this again。 。。。more
Rosa
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A telephone hacker later a computer hacker and the law。
Maurine
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Bit of a slog sometimes if you are not much of a techie。
Cassey
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I got this book for a deal on audible and had no idea how captivating it would be！ It also turns out that I own the book "Art of Invisibility" not even realizing that it is also written by Kevin Mitnick when I bought it because I did not know who he was。 The story was full of twists and turns and uncovers the concept of social engineering to the commoner as well as confirms in detail how even in the 1990's the ability to gain insight and privacy data from just about anything you want to focus on I got this book for a deal on audible and had no idea how captivating it would be！ It also turns out that I own the book "Art of Invisibility" not even realizing that it is also written by Kevin Mitnick when I bought it because I did not know who he was。 The story was full of twists and turns and uncovers the concept of social engineering to the commoner as well as confirms in detail how even in the 1990's the ability to gain insight and privacy data from just about anything you want to focus on is a possibility if you are very good at it。 Plus， it is very informative on the ins and outs of the prison system and exposes some of the problems within that system that need revising。 I usually do not read books by the same author that are not part of a series back to back， but I am very focused on protecting my data from big brother companies so I am already listening to the Art of Invisibility。 Having not been on the Kevin Mitnick bandwagon until only last month （about 20 years too late）， if the book didn't sell me， then the fact that JJ Abrams had him as a guest on the show Alias alongside Jennifer Garner just because he was a huge fan and loved the idea of the irony of it having him appear as a CIA agent， well that will do it。 I am now a huge fan！ This is a very interesting and fascinating memoir and I am glad I stumbled on it。 。。。more
T
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Enjoyed it。 Adventurous。 Exciting。 Learned quite something about Social Engineering Attacks。
Amy
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I have to agree with other reviewers who have pointed out the author's personality disorder and/or dysfunction。 He doesn't appear to care at all about others。 He is sensitive to how others treat him， but doesn't appear to have any sense of caring or even awareness of what he has done to others。 "Not a big deal" that he holds up someone's paycheck， has sensitive personal and financial information about others， has violated so many people。One clear example of his double standards was the driving w I have to agree with other reviewers who have pointed out the author's personality disorder and/or dysfunction。 He doesn't appear to care at all about others。 He is sensitive to how others treat him， but doesn't appear to have any sense of caring or even awareness of what he has done to others。 "Not a big deal" that he holds up someone's paycheck， has sensitive personal and financial information about others， has violated so many people。One clear example of his double standards was the driving while talking on a cell phone。 Not acceptable for others to do， but just fine for Kevin Mitnick to do。 Says he never hacked "government agencies" and soon after explains about his access of California DMV， a state government agency。Overall， the book was interesting to me， but may not be to others。 I am sure the author felt good having the chance to "get the record straight" about not only what he has done， but what his intentions were。 Too bad he doesn't deserve to be judged by his stated intentions any more than someone who breaks into houses just to see if he can。 Both are violations despite whatever laws may or may not exist。 This guy has spent his life violating others repeatedly。 。。。more
Socrate
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Instinctul meu de a găsi căi de ocolire a barierelor şi a elementelor de protecţie s-a manifestat de timpuriu。 Aveam cam un an şi jumătate când am descoperit o metodă de a ieşi din ţarc， după care am ajuns la portiţa specială pentru copii din uşa de la intrare， pe care am reuşit să o deschid。 Pentru mama， acesta a fost primul avertisment a ceea ce va să vie。Am crescut fără fraţi。 După ce tata a plecat， când aveam trei ani， mama mea， pe nume Shelly， şi cu mine am trăit în apartamente drăguţe， cu Instinctul meu de a găsi căi de ocolire a barierelor şi a elementelor de protecţie s-a manifestat de timpuriu。 Aveam cam un an şi jumătate când am descoperit o metodă de a ieşi din ţarc， după care am ajuns la portiţa specială pentru copii din uşa de la intrare， pe care am reuşit să o deschid。 Pentru mama， acesta a fost primul avertisment a ceea ce va să vie。Am crescut fără fraţi。 După ce tata a plecat， când aveam trei ani， mama mea， pe nume Shelly， şi cu mine am trăit în apartamente drăguţe， cu o chirie modică， din cartiere sigure din San Fernando Valley， peste deal de Los Angeles。 Mama ne întreţinea pe amândoi având o slujbă de chelneriţă într-unul sau altul din multele localuri întinse de-a lungul bulevardului Ventura， care străbate valea de la est la vest。 Tata locuia în alt stat din SUA şi， deşi ţinea la mine， în cea mai mare parte s-a implicat doar ocazional în viaţa mea cât timp am crescut， până când s-a mutat în Los Angeles， când aveam treisprezece ani。 。。。more
Byren Burdess
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The author isn't a perfect role model （for a few reasons） but I enjoyed his story despite， as others pointed out， it sounding a bit repetitive in parts。 But this is a book of his exploits （pun intended） into the hacking and social engineering world so I don't get the complaints of him explaining how he got through security then explaining a similar way of getting through another place later， did you expect him to mix up his life story to sword fight past security to keep you more entertained？ Ac The author isn't a perfect role model （for a few reasons） but I enjoyed his story despite， as others pointed out， it sounding a bit repetitive in parts。 But this is a book of his exploits （pun intended） into the hacking and social engineering world so I don't get the complaints of him explaining how he got through security then explaining a similar way of getting through another place later， did you expect him to mix up his life story to sword fight past security to keep you more entertained？ Actually yeah that would have been fun。 Still though， enjoyable overall。 。。。more
James Meechan
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Kevin loves Kevin。 Kevin believes Kevin can do no wrong。Kevin is also a con man and a liar so it's very hard to find the truths in all of this。 The book is also very badly written。I had expected to find this very interesting but in the end its a boring mess。 Kevin loves Kevin。 Kevin believes Kevin can do no wrong。Kevin is also a con man and a liar so it's very hard to find the truths in all of this。 The book is also very badly written。I had expected to find this very interesting but in the end its a boring mess。 。。。more
Umegbewe
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I found this book very interesting， it details the life of Kevin Mitnick and his exploits with the Phone Companies and use of Social Engineering。 A correction of the highly inaccurate "Takedown" book written by Tsuomu Shimmoura。 Nice read。 I found this book very interesting， it details the life of Kevin Mitnick and his exploits with the Phone Companies and use of Social Engineering。 A correction of the highly inaccurate "Takedown" book written by Tsuomu Shimmoura。 Nice read。 。。。more
Juan Felipe Fajardo
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I dont get it。 Hours and hours， years of hacking。 Just for the fun of it。 Naaaa
Abby
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You are better off reading Catch Me If You Can， another true story with an emphasis on social engineering that I found much more interesting。 Maybe someone with more technical knowledge would get more out of this book。 However， regardless of your knowledge of computers and programming， the authors victimized attitude will most likely turn most people off this book。
Keith
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Total self-promotion。。。that said it's an amazing ride。 I was one of the kids in college who was all about "Free Kevin！" Hearing the full story and the incredible cross-country journey of a gifted social engineer was thought-provoking in the same way Catch Me If You Can did for the airline industry。 Total self-promotion。。。that said it's an amazing ride。 I was one of the kids in college who was all about "Free Kevin！" Hearing the full story and the incredible cross-country journey of a gifted social engineer was thought-provoking in the same way Catch Me If You Can did for the airline industry。 。。。more
Brian
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Not very well written。 Author was more interested in telling every story even though it was very repetitive and dragged on quite a bit。 I'm sure he was thinking "there's a story in here somewhere。" Too bad he didn't find it before he started writing。 Not very well written。 Author was more interested in telling every story even though it was very repetitive and dragged on quite a bit。 I'm sure he was thinking "there's a story in here somewhere。" Too bad he didn't find it before he started writing。 。。。more
Ian
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Interesting first-hand hacker stories。 I’ve added his other book The Art of Deception to my want to reads， so that is def saying something about how much enjoyed his social engineering shenanigans that got him in the can。 The reader can pick up a lot of diff ways that hackers have used social engineering to crack passwords， not that they actually guess them， but the actual user hands it to them in plain txt。 I take a lot of good lessons learned from this book that I will use to protect myself an Interesting first-hand hacker stories。 I’ve added his other book The Art of Deception to my want to reads， so that is def saying something about how much enjoyed his social engineering shenanigans that got him in the can。 The reader can pick up a lot of diff ways that hackers have used social engineering to crack passwords， not that they actually guess them， but the actual user hands it to them in plain txt。 I take a lot of good lessons learned from this book that I will use to protect myself and systems， not that I like Shimmy （char in the book）， but just looking out for my own。 Mitnick has the obsessive work ethic that blurs with genius， just like many other success stories that share these characteristics， so it was def a pleasure to learn from the source rather than watered down anecdotes。 。。。more
Andrew
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