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Kevin Mitnick

Kevin Mitnick Books

Consultant

Kevin Mitnick, born on August 6, 1963, is a renowned computer security consultant. He is known for his exceptional skills in the field of hacking and was once the FBI's most wanted fugitive for illegal computer system intrusions. After his release from prison, Mitnick transformed into a computer security expert, providing consulting services to businesses to help them prevent cyber attacks.

Ghost in the Wires: My Adventures as th...

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The Art of Deception: Controlling the H...

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Related Quotes

“Beware of geeks bearing gifts”

Hacking Malware Trojan

Book:The Art of Deception: Controlling the Human Element of Security

Source: The Art of Deception: Controlling the Human Element of Security

“You can never protect yourself 100%. What you do is protect your self as much as possible and mitigate risk to an acceptable degree. You can never remove all risk.”

Self Risk Protect Degrees Remove Acceptable Protect Yourself

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“A hacker doesnt deliberately destroy data or profit from his activities.”

Activity Profit Data Hackers

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“The human. Now you know all about your target”

Knows Humans Target

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“You can't go to Windows Update and get a patch for stupidity.”

Window Stupidity Patches Updates

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“When I was in prison, a Colombian drug lord, offered me $5 million in cash to manipulate a computer system so that he would be released. I turned him down.”

Would Be Lord Millions Drug Computer Prison Cash Manipulate Computer Systems

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“The Americans are the most gullible, because they don't like to deny co-workers' requests.”

Workers Deny Request Gullible Co Worker

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“I obtained confidential information in the same way government employees did, and I did it all without even touching a computer. ... I was so successful with this line of attack that I rarely had to go towards a technical attack.”

Way Government Lines Successful Information Computer Employee Touching Confidential Government Employees

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“I use Mac. Not because it's more secure than everything else - because it is actually less secure than Windows - but I use it because it is still under the radar. People who write malicious code want the greatest return on their investment, so they target Windows systems. I still work with Windows in virtual machines.”

People Want Writing Stills Use Return Window Machines Investment Secure Code Target Macs Radar Malicious

Book:Ghost in the Wires: My Adventures as the World's Most Wanted Hacker

Source: Ghost in the Wires: My Adventures as the World's Most Wanted Hacker

“I trust online banking. You know why? Because if somebody hacks into my account and defrauds my credit card company, or my online bank account, guess who takes the loss? The bank, not me.”

Ifs Knows Loss Company Accounts Credit Cards Online Banking Credit Card Hacks Bank Accounts

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“Social engineers veil themselves in a cloak of believability.”

Social Engineers Veils Cloaks Believability

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“The hacker mindset doesn't actually see what happens on the other side, to the victim.”

Happens Sides Victim Mindset Hackers

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“Social engineering is using manipulation, influence and deception to get a person, a trusted insider within an organization, to comply with a request, and the request is usually to release information or to perform some sort of action item that benefits that attacker.”

Persons Action Social Influence Information Benefits Organization Release Deception Manipulation Engineering Trusted Items Request Insiders Social Engineering

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“My actions constituted pure hacking that resulted in relatively trivial expenses for the companies involved, despite the government's false claims.”

Government Action Company Involved Pure Claims Despite Expenses Corny Hacking Computer Hacking

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“All they need to do is to set up some website somewhere selling some bogus product at twenty percent of the normal market prices and people are going to be tricked into providing their credit card numbers.”

People Needs Numbers Products Normal Percent Twenties Credit Selling Cards Providing Website Credit Card

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“I made stupid decisions as a kid, or as a young adult, but I'm trying to be now, I'm trying to take this lemon and make lemonade.”

Trying Made Kids Funny Young Decision Stupid Adults Young Adult Lemons Lemonade Make Lemonade Stupid Decision

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“As a young boy, I was taught in high school that hacking was cool.”

School Young Boys Taught High School Hacking Computer Hacking

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“Garbage can provide important details for hackers: names, telephone numbers, a company's internal jargon.”

Important Names Numbers Company Details Internals Telephones Garbage Hackers Jargon Garbage Cans

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“Hackers are breaking the systems for profit. Before, it was about intellectual curiosity and pursuit of knowledge and thrill, and now hacking is big business.”

Bigs Intellectual Curiosity Profit Pursuit Thrill Big Business Hacking Hackers Pursuit Of Knowledge Hacked Intellectual Curiosity Computer Hacking

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“Security is always going to be a cat and mouse game because there'll be people out there that are hunting for the zero day award, you have people that don't have configuration management, don't have vulnerability management, don't have patch management.”

People Games Security Cat Management Vulnerability Zero Awards Hunting Mice Patches Configuration Cat And Mouse

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“Some people think technology has the answers.”

People Thinking Answers Technology

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“A company can spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on firewalls, intrusion detection systems and encryption and other security technologies, but if an attacker can call one trusted person within the company, and that person complies, and if the attacker gets in, then all that money spent on technology is essentially wasted.”

Ifs Persons Money Company Technology Security Calling Waste Computer Hundred Safety Dollars Trusted Attacking Hackers Intrusion Detection Encryption Complying

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“I get hired by companies to hack into their systems and break into their physical facilities to find security holes. Our success rate is 100%; we've always found a hole.”

Found Company Break Security Rate Holes Facility Hacks

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“It’s actually a smarter crime because imagine if you rob a bank, or you’re dealing drugs. If you get caught you’re going to spend a lot of time in custody. But with hacking, it’s much easier to commit the crime and the risk of punishment is slim to none.”

Ifs Imagine Risk Crime Easier Drug Caught Punishment Commit Smarter Hacking Slim Custody Joint Custody

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“Choosing a hard-to-guess, but easy-to-remember password is important!”

Important Hard Remember Easy Passwords

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“I could have evaded the FBI a lot longer if I had been able to control my passion for hacking.”

Ifs Able Passion My Passion Fbi Hacking

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“I get hired to hack into computers now and sometimes it's actually easier than it was years ago.”

Years Sometimes Easier Computer Years Ago Hacks

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“My argument is not that I shouldn't have been punished, but that the punishment didn't fit the crime.”

Has Beens Crime Fit Argument Punishment

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“Should we fear hackers? Intention is at the heart of this discussion.”

Should Heart Intention Discussion Hackers

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“Are hackers a threat? The degree of threat presented by any conduct, whether legal or illegal, depends on the actions and intent of the individual and the harm they cause.”

Action Individual Causes Depends Degrees Threat Harm Illegal Hackers

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“I got so passionate about technology. Hacking to me was like a video game. It was about getting trophies. I just kept going on and on, despite all the trouble I was getting into, because I was hooked.”

Games Technology Trouble Passionate Video Despite Trophies Hooked Hacking Computer Hacking

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“It was used for decades to describe talented computer enthusiasts, people whose skill at using computers to solve technical problems and puzzles was - and is - respected and admired by others possessing similar technical skills.”

People Problem Used Skills Computer Solve Decades Puzzles Possessing Technical Skills

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“New security loopholes are constantly popping up because of wireless networking. The cat-and-mouse game between hackers and system administrators is still in full swing.”

Stills Games Security Cat Swings Mice Networking Wireless Hackers Administrators Loopholes Popping Cat And Mouse

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“Oracle, for example, has even hired people to dumpster dive for information about its competitor, Microsoft. It's not even illegal, because trash isn't covered by data secrecy laws.”

People Law Information Example Data Illegal Covered Competitors Trash Secrecy Microsoft Oracles Dumpsters

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“For the average home-user, anti-virus software is a must.”

Home Average Software Users Viruses

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“I characterize myself as a retired hacker. I'm applying what I know to improve security at companies.”

Knows Company Security Retired Hackers

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“I did get a huge endorphin rush when I was able to crack a system because it was like a video game.”

Able Games Huge Video Cracks Endorphins

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“I saw myself as an electronic joy rider.”

Joy Saws Riders

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“I was pretty much the government's poster boy for what I had done.”

Done Government Boys Posters

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs founded Apple Inc, which set the computing world on its ear with the Macintosh in 1984.”

World Jobs Computer Ears Apples Computing Macintosh Apple Inc

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“The key to social engineering is influencing a person to do something that allows the hacker to gain access to information or your network.”

Persons Social Influence Information Keys Gains Access Engineering Hackers Social Engineering Access To Information

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“Any type of operating system that I wanted to be able to hack, I basically compromised the source code, copied it over to the university because I didn't have enough space on my 200 megabyte hard drive.”

Hard Enough Able Wanted Space Source Type University Code Hacks Operating Systems

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“But a lot of businesses out there don't see the return on investment, they look at it as a liability, and until they can understand that proactive security actually returns, gives them a return on investment, it's still a hard sell for people.”

People Giving Looks Stills Hard Security Return Sells Investment Proactive Liability Return On Investment

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“I believe in having each device secured and monitoring each device, rather than just monitoring holistically on the network, and then responding in short enough time for damage control.”

Believe Enough I Believe I Believe In Damage Devices Responding Enough Time Secured Monitoring Damage Control

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“I was addicted to hacking, more for the intellectual challenge, the curiosity, the seduction of adventure; not for stealing, or causing damage or writing computer viruses.”

Writing Challenges Adventure Computer Intellectual Curiosity Stealing Damage Seduction Viruses Hacking Computer Viruses Computer Hacking

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“I'm still a hacker. I get paid for it now. I never received any monetary gain from the hacking I did before. The main difference in what I do now compared to what I did then is that I now do it with authorization.”

Stills Differences Gains Paid Monetary Hacking Hackers

Book:Ghost in the Wires: My Adventures as the World's Most Wanted Hacker

Source: Ghost in the Wires: My Adventures as the World's Most Wanted Hacker

“When an attacker fails with one person, they often go to another person. The key is to report the attack to other departments. Workers should know to act like they are going along with what the hacker wants and take copious notes so the company will know what the hacker is trying to find.”

Knows Want Should Trying Persons Company Failing Keys Notes Workers Department Reports Hackers

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“Both social engineering and technical attacks played a big part in what I was able to do. It was a hybrid. I used social engineering when it was appropriate, and exploited technical vulnerabilities when it was appropriate.”

Bigs Able Used Social Vulnerability Appropriate Engineering Hybrid Social Engineering

Author:Kevin Mitnick

“Computer hacking really results in financial losses and hassles. The objectives of terrorist groups are more serious. That is not to say that cyber groups can't access a telephone switch in Manhattan on a day like 9/11, shut it down, and therefore cause more casualties.”

“I can go into LinkedIn and search for network engineers and come up with a list of great spear-phishing targets because they usually have administrator rights over the network. Then I go onto Twitter or Facebook and trick them into doing something, and I have privileged access.”

I Can Rights Come Up Access Lists Tricks Target Engineers Privileged Spears Administrators Linkedin

Author:Kevin Mitnick

About the Author

Born: August 6, 1963
Known for: Consultant
Quotes: 69

Related Topics

Hackers Hacking People Computer Company Security Access Computer Hacking Ifs Social

Popular Topics

People Ifs Thinking Knows Men World Way Want Love Life Inspirational Needs Giving Feels Should Writing Trying Years Mind Firsts

Books & Sources

Ghost in the Wires: My Adventures as the World's Most Wanted HackerRelated source material

The Art of Deception: Controlling the Human Element of SecurityRelated source material

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