This Is How They Tell Me the World Ends

The Cyberweapons Arms Race

By: Nicole Perlroth

Narrated by: Allyson Ryan

Bloomsbury presents This Is How They Tell Me the World Ends by Nicole Perlroth, read by Allyson Ryan.

THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * Winner of the Financial Times & McKinsey Business Book of the Year Award * Bronze Medal, Arthur Ross Book Award (Council on Foreign Relations)

“Part John le Carré and more parts Michael Crichton . . . spellbinding.” The New Yorker

"Written in the hot, propulsive prose of a spy thriller" (The New York Times), the untold story of the cyberweapons market—the most secretive, government-backed market on earth—and a terrifying first look at a new kind of global warfare.

Zero day: a software bug that allows a hacker to break into your devices and move around undetected. One of the most coveted tools in a spy's arsenal, a zero day has the power to silently spy on your iPhone, dismantle the safety controls at a chemical plant, alter an election, and shut down the electric grid (just ask Ukraine).

For decades, under cover of classification levels and non-disclosure agreements, the United States government became the world’s dominant hoarder of zero days. U.S. government agents paid top dollar—first thousands, and later millions of dollars— to hackers willing to sell their lock-picking code and their silence.

Then the United States lost control of its hoard and the market.

Now those zero days are in the hands of hostile nations and mercenaries who do not care if your vote goes missing, your clean water is contaminated, or our nuclear plants melt down.

Filled with spies, hackers, arms dealers, and a few unsung heroes, written like a thriller and a reference, This Is How They Tell Me the World Ends is an astonishing feat of journalism. Based on years of reporting and hundreds of interviews, Nicole Perlroth lifts the curtain on a market in shadow, revealing the urgent threat faced by us all if we cannot bring the global cyber arms race to heel.

©2021 Nicole Perlroth (P)2021 Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

Computer

After listening to this story I am about to unplug myself from the digital world and go back to pen and paper. You read about how sloppy software companies wrote buggy code and didn’t worry about fixing it and our own government failing totally us about the break ins the got by using this bad core. Even worse the NSA and others didn’t tell the software companies about what they could do with this horrible. Again it all comes back to money and need for greater profit!

Some mispronounced words but all in all a great listen

I agree with some of the reviews that some words or mispronounced. That alone is not worth throwing the baby out with the bath water here. This book is well researched and if you have any interest in the cyber warfare that is currently going on in the world, this book is a must read/listen.

I wish the author had read her own book

the person reading the book struggled quite a bit with pronouncing some of the technical vocabulary. It would be worthwhile to clear those sorts of things up as they detract quite a bit from the book.

Hackers have us by the short hair. Read and Learn!

The most important book out this year. Educate yourself and spread the word! Ms. Perlroths deep dive into this underworld is exciting and terrifying. This is just the beginning of our pain.

Frighteningly Entertaining

While this book should (and likely will) scare you, it’s an absolutely necessary read. The statement, “I don’t care if they spy on me. I have nothing to hide…” is transformed to “what am I giving them access to?” It’s our responsibility to close all the back doors we’ve left open for so long. This book does a great job of revealing them where we didn’t realize they were lurking.

Interesting

Very good book that all Americans should read. Aside from describing the growth and extent of the cyber risk s that the World faces, it clearly explains who is to blame - the United States government. It describes the ineptitude, immorality, and lies of officials particularly at the NSA and how they have placed Americans at catastrophic risk. Unfortunately the author in one chapter digresses in to diatribes about officials she dislike. Otherwise it is an excellent book.

Must read

I can’t say enough about the work put into this book and project. It never felt one sided but slightly skewed in options of the admiral. I enjoyed this so much I plan on buying a hard copy of the book. Very important read.

Solid

Well that was very informative and frankly, frikkin terrifying .... pop an anti anxiety med of choice when you get to the last two hours or so.

eye opening story

very informative. IMHO the story could've been told more effectively in half the words. otherwise I would rank 5 stars.

A Must Listen for All Americans. Great Narration.

Every American should read/listen to this book, for so many reasons.
Every politician REALLY needs to read this book.
And every partisan American would greatly benefit from this book (we’re all on the same side folks).

Thank you for writing it, Nicole, and making this information accessible to people who still think it is okay to say “oh, I’m not technical” while assuming it won’t set them back in our ever more technical world. They especially need to read your book.