The Art of Deception Summary
5 min read ⌚
We summarize the most mind-blowing parts of this book in order to deliver the true meaning of The Art of Deception. Protect your company from modern thieves or con-artist by educating your associates.
Hoodwinking is a phenomenon which takes advantage of firm’s weakest security link or in most cases the new untrained employee.
Who Should Read “The Art of Deception”? And Why?
The Art of Deception is one of those books, enriched with facts, and catchy stories which illustrate a point. If you are interested in “The Art of Deception” and how these hackers used it to achieve their goals – then this book is suited for a person of your stature.
Lots of mind games:
You as a manager must spot that security blanket and reveal it. This book is prescribed for decision-makers, managers and other executives who have an important role in their companies.
About Kevin D. Mitnick & William L. Simon
As said earlier, Kevin D. Mitnick is a notorious hacker who momentarily works as a security consultant to corporations worldwide. His hacking abilities helped him to co-found Defensive Thinking, a consulting firm located in Los Angeles. Among other things, Kevin has also testified and explained the need for legislation before the Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs.
Many renowned magazines and journals published his articles and continued to do so. Once in awhile, people have the privilege to enjoy his oratory abilities as a keynote speaker.
William L. Simon, on the other hand, is an award-winning writer and renowned personality.
“The Art of Deception Summary”
First of all, stop looking for criminal records and focus on how to avoid being deceived in the future. See why Kevin and William have a full credibility to share their perspective and outline important areas in the book “The Art of Deception”. One of the authors of this book Kevin Mitnick learned from very young age to bypass the security system as a malicious hacker.
What happened then?
During his time, he also entered the most wanted transcontinental list due to his cyber-criminal activities. His action caused him a prison time which transformed his mindset by using his skills and talent into something more profound like becoming a corporate security consultant. At the age of twelve, Kevin realized that he could exploit the weakness of the buss-ticketing system and got his reward – free rides.
What a story — Read more:
Nevertheless, the free rides weren’t so significant; as the social-engineering skills, he possessed. They gave him access to multiple computer systems. Probably, he wasn’t doing it to harm anyone; it was simply his way of having fun.
The team’s chemistry can be easily impaired if you do not pay attention to the “energy-stealers”. Kevin D. Mitnick’s theories and fact come from his life-altering experience in jail, where he chose to operate legally. In order to conduct a proper training, your employees should know how to behave when a person request information related to the company.
Sharing unauthorized info among departments even is considered a crime – in some companies, so you have to educate your associates to behave properly – in accordance with the importance of the subject. From time to time, suspicious individuals use the weakest link in some organizations to come by valuable intel.
The profile of a con artist is not familiar to the majority of managers. Social engineers, for example, have attributes which match with the particular con – profile. Their job is to use their mind games and intelligence to deceive other employees or associates.
Here’s the thing about “The Art of Deception“:
You need to separate two types of influencers. The first category represents the money-stealers, perhaps not in the traditional sense, but with other methods pursuing the same goal. In the second one are those who use their knowledge and other psychological techniques to persuade, deceive, influence, or get access to valuable information.
Mitnick’s lies, desires and ambition to acquire information about computer networks and security processes created “the world’s most wanted hacker.” At the present moment, his passion remains the same, but the field of work shifted for the benefit of the society and people overall. Now, Kevin decided to help governments fight cybercrime, and improve security systems.
“The Art of Deception” reveals the tricks any professional con would use within organizational circles. Kevin D. Mitnick once had the same temper and devotion to break into systems, which ultimately led him to prison. His record and expertise presented a possibility, a new way to utilize his skills as a corporate security consultant. In his book, there are hundreds of theories which expose the security lapses in companies.
Stay tuned for more on “The Art of Deception”:
The “human element” plays the pivotal role in such circumstances. The co-author of this magnificent book William L. Simon brings to light the trick that social engineering use in order to take advantage of the system and gain access to all sorts of information.
Despite the informational side of the book, this masterpiece also has an educative side, which teaches managers how to ward off such security threats and instruct employees.
Key Lessons from “The Art of Deception”
1. Control the weakest link
2. The dangers of a subtle steal
3. Be careful from whom you receive help
Control the weakest link
The Human Factor is the greatest culprit as Kevin D. Mitnick once declared. What is easier than pretending to be someone else and asking for valuable information. Only by using this method you can get access to thousands of classified files because the “Human Element” is still is the weakest organization link out there.
The dangers of a subtle steal
Sometimes social engineers known for their notaries hacking abilities can get information not by requesting it but by stealing it. Stealing refers to many things like stealing an identity; taking someone’s time; pretending to be interested in something etc.
Be careful from whom you receive help
The “let me help you guy” is the most dangerous one of all. It is classic con-approach and tactic used take advantage of the weakest link. From time to time, some member of your organization may cause an issue on purpose; resolve it for you and ask something in return – like information.
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“The Art of Deception” Quotes
One noted software libertarian, Richard Stallman, even refused to protect his account with a password. Click To Tweet Anyone who thinks that security products alone offer true security is settling for the illusion of security. Click To Tweet To defeat security measures, an attacker, intruder or social engineer must find a way to deceive a trusted user into revealing information, or trick an unsuspecting mark into providing access. Click To Tweet The more trusting we are, the more likely that the next social engineer to arrive in town will be able to deceive us into giving up our company’s proprietary information. Click To Tweet Anyone who thinks that security products alone offer true security is settling for the illusion of security. Click To Tweet
Our Critical Review
Despite Kevin D. Mitnick reputation as a hacker, this book lacks a little accuracy about the info being share. Other than that, in our opinion “The Art of Deception” is ideal for social engineers, because it reveals a lot of “behind the curtain” kind of stuff.
Emir is the Head of Marketing at 12min. In his spare time, he loves to meditate and play soccer.
