Thinking about Cybersecurity: From Cyber Crime to Cyber Warfare

By: Paul Rosenzweig, The Great Courses

Narrated by: Paul Rosenzweig

Cyberspace is the 21st century’s greatest engine of change. Telecommunications, commercial and financial systems, government operations, food production - virtually every aspect of global civilization now depends on interconnected cyber systems to operate; systems that have helped advance medicine, streamline everyday commerce, and so much more.

Thinking about Cybersecurity: From Cyber Crime to Cyber Warfare is your guide to understanding the intricate nature of this pressing subject. Delivered by cybersecurity expert and professor Paul Rosenzweig, these 18 engaging lectures will open your eyes to the structure of the Internet, the unique dangers it breeds, and the ways we’re learning how to understand, manage, and reduce these dangers.

In addition, Professor Rosenzweig offers sensible tips on how best to protect yourself, your network, or your business from attack or data loss.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this course are those of the professor and do not necessarily reflect the position or policy of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the U.S. Department of Defense, or the U.S. government.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

©2013 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)2013 The Great Courses

Solid information both for learning and refreshing

I enjoyed this book quite a bit, there are diversified clusters of knowledge ranging from beginner knowledge to advanced ideas. Also the last couple chapters have good future ideas and projects of computing.

Well done overview of Cybersecurity

I think this lecture series, with its pdf file course guide was well written. The lecturer delivered interesting tid bits about what was just covered and what he planned to discuss in the next lecture.

Great information and a look into the future.

At times the professor explained the topic at a very basic level. However there are some good bits of information to be gleaned. Good for beginners and non technical people. Hopefully he will do another lecture discussing the hacks from Russia , SWIFT banking system, WikiLeaks, and insider threats i.e. leakers.

Excellent Overview of Cybersecurity

A great course for those who are looking to learn more about Cybersecurity. Told in a manner that includes the details, including acronyms, but in an easily accessible and relatable manner. I am looking to transition to this field and this course has cemented my decision. A great course for those looking to understand the cyber events that are shaping our world today.

outstanding lecture series

What did you love best about Thinking about Cybersecurity: From Cyber Crime to Cyber Warfare?

The lecture series provided a great overview, for the non-expert, of the most current issues in information- & cyber-security, in a highly intelligible & engaging manner. Even if you are moderately literate on this subject, from trade press reading & from the security policies of your corporate home, you will learn a lot from this series.

What does Professor Paul Rosenzweig bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Well, this is not a book, just a lecture series. I understand that the author has written some books on the same topic & I plan to look them up and get one if it doesn't look too technical.

Was hoping it would be more indepth

The book is more focused on cyber security from a policy and regulatory point of view. I was hoping it would be more focused on concrete methods and examples.

Interesting and topical

A good review of cyber security history and issues. Accessible for a non-computer person like me. Chapter 16 has advice for protecting one's own systems and data.

informative.

Great way to drive your thinking and make you realize the opportunity in the cyber world.

Wow, this course was an eye opener!

This is my first review of an audio download from Audible. (I say "audio download" because this is more like a classroom style lecture series rather than the more common audio book.) Until now I thought it totally unnecessary to add yet another me-too review to other books I've listened to with dozens to hundreds of similar reviews already posted. But since this course has been lightly reviewed I wanted to give my input for others considering this lecture series.

In a few words: I really enjoyed it...

I really thought I was pretty savvy when it comes to computer security. Was I ever wrong! This series was fascinating from beginning to end. The Stuxnet virus lecture (lecture 1) was really amazing. The hardware vulnerability lecture was disturbing. The section on password vulnerability made me super paranoid, and has made me change all my passwords to ones that are much more secure.

I will certainly be more careful in my browsing habits, but I worry greatly about attacks on our infrastructure here in the USA. After listening to this series I was taking a walk along the California aqueduct and came to a massive flow control gate station. There was nobody there. The building itself was heavily fortified, and most likely alarmed. But everything is controlled remotely, and the entire path of the controlling cable is clearly marked with "Do not dig here" placards. Can you tap in here by digging down a few feet? What if someone hacked into that network and opened all the control gates along the entire route from northern California to Los Angeles? Are the control sequences encrypted? How secure are they? Are they connected to the internet? [Keep in mind, though, the Stuxnet virus penetrated the Iranian uranium enrichment facility even though it wasn't hooked up to the internet].

So I can be prosecuted for a federal crime if I update my facebook account at work, but if I make a personal phone call on the company phone it is not? The legal system is so outdated, based on law from the 1970's when phones were the most common communication medium. Fascinating stuff.

I was amazed at how vulnerable we are, and I don't have much confidence in the ability of our elected leaders to handle this. Are we headed for an impending crisis?

Lacking in Technical Detail

If you could sum up Thinking about Cybersecurity: From Cyber Crime to Cyber Warfare in three words, what would they be?

If you're looking for a broad overview of cybersecurity issues, covered in layman's terms, this course is a good resource. For those looking for in an in-depth look at the technical details behind why cybersecurity issues exist and how exactly cybersecurity threats and principles work, you will be let down.

Would you be willing to try another book from The Great Courses? Why or why not?

I love the Great Courses and I highly recommend them.

What about Professor Paul Rosenzweig’s performance did you like?

The spoken lectures are delivered in an engaging way, with good delivery and enough intellectual meat to hold the attention of those casually interested.

Any additional comments?

The lectures are well delivered, but are not well designed. The course doesn't proceed in a way that lays any real ground work and the lack of any assumption of technical knowledge on the part of the audience means that it ranges from being vague to utterly superficial (technical concepts are primarily presented using metaphors and analogies without enough substance to give the larger security issues the real gravity and illumination that they deserve.