by Joe Gleinser
25. November 2009 05:18
Being called "a worst case scenario of cloud computing" on Twitter demanded I pick this book up. It is actually a terrifyingly good read that demonstrates Suarez's technical knowledge as well as his ability to craft a great thriller. In his fantasy world thousands of corporate networks are penetrated with an advanced botnet. Oh wait, that's the real world too. In Daemon the botnet is controlled by a deceased game developer with enough money to ensure his ambitions persist beyond the grave. These ambitions include murder, mayhem, extortion, and more. Good times!
A few thoughts:
1) Though much of the technology is still in early stages of adoption, it exists today. If you can hunt a deer over the internet, you obviously can kill a man.
2) Security breaches of the sort required to perpetrate a more realistic version of this attack occur constantly.
3) The book incorporates interesting socio-economic themes as well. Suarez is obviously under the impression that private industry exercises near absolute control over our government. I, for one, welcome our corporate overlords.
4) The disaffection of corporate IT employees from the business was another key theme. Similar to Heinlein's "The Roads Must Roll" in which a technical class realizes the power they can exert over those dependent on their abilities. A massive, unionized strike flexes their muscle. If you're an IT executive this should be yet another thing to keep you awake at night.
5) For anyone not using offline storage such as tape, read this book. Offline storage is a critical last defense against many attacks. Unfortunately a large percentage of IT execs don't value it to the extend it demands. In much the same way accounting standards dictate separation of tasks, offline backup tasks should be split from normal IT tasks and, where possible, from your IT staff. Let offline storage be your panic room.
Check this book out soon. The next installment of the story is released in January. I hope there are a dozen in this series.