Cult of the Dead Cow

Author: Joseph Menn
Publisher: PublicAffairs
ISBN: 9781541762367
Category : Computers
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Book Description
The shocking untold story of the elite secret society of hackers fighting to protect our privacy, our freedom -- even democracy itself Cult of the Dead Cow is the tale of the oldest, most respected, and most famous American hacking group of all time. Though until now it has remained mostly anonymous, its members invented the concept of hacktivism, released the top tool for testing password security, and created what was for years the best technique for controlling computers from afar, forcing giant companies to work harder to protect customers. They contributed to the development of Tor, the most important privacy tool on the net, and helped build cyberweapons that advanced US security without injuring anyone. With its origins in the earliest days of the Internet, the cDc is full of oddball characters -- activists, artists, even future politicians. Many of these hackers have become top executives and advisors walking the corridors of power in Washington and Silicon Valley. The most famous is former Texas Congressman and current presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke, whose time in the cDc set him up to found a tech business, launch an alternative publication in El Paso, and make long-shot bets on unconventional campaigns. Today, the group and its followers are battling electoral misinformation, making personal data safer, and battling to keep technology a force for good instead of for surveillance and oppression. Cult of the Dead Cow shows how governments, corporations, and criminals came to hold immense power over individuals and how we can fight back against them.

The Book of Cao: Enlightenment through a Poke in the Eye

Author:
Publisher: Lulu.com
ISBN: 0974653713
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 170

Book Description

Field of Dead Horses

Author: Nick Allen Brown
Publisher: Turner Publishing Company
ISBN: 1684424283
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 249

Book Description
Small Town...Big Secret Georgetown, Kentucky, 1939 Soon after dawn on a February morning, Elliott Chapel discovers an unconscious, bloodied, young woman lying face up in the cold waters of Penny creek. Days later, awakening from her hypothermic coma, Ellie Evans finds herself on the Chapel Farm. Once she explains her plight as the abused wife of a powerful man, Elliott offers her and her son a place to stay and vows to keep them from harm For both Ellie and Elliott, life under the same roof is a challenge—with the cantankerous Paul Chapel, Elliott’s father who spends his retirement days drinking whiskey with his aging coonhound by his side. Elliott has taken over the daily operations of the horse farm with his assistant, Booley. Booley manages a small staff and helps Elliott attempt the impossible with the newly-acquired horse of a high-profile client. Ellie pitches in and helps out when she can and helps change the mood of the busy farm with her sweet charm and culinary skills, even getting on the good side of the bad-tempered Paul Chapel. Just when daily life settles into an enjoyable rhythm, a violent struggle erupts when the malicious Mayor Evans descends on the farm with the county sheriff and two deputies. Armed with shotguns, they remove Ellie and her son from the farm, against her will. Narrated by Elliott five decades later, he recalls the incident on the chapel Farm and subsequent events which ultimately reveal the long-kept secret—hidden in a small town since 1939.

Exploding the Phone

Author: Phil Lapsley
Publisher: Open Road + Grove/Atlantic
ISBN: 0802193757
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 432

Book Description
“A rollicking history of the telephone system and the hackers who exploited its flaws.” —Kirkus Reviews, starred review Before smartphones, back even before the Internet and personal computers, a misfit group of technophiles, blind teenagers, hippies, and outlaws figured out how to hack the world’s largest machine: the telephone system. Starting with Alexander Graham Bell’s revolutionary “harmonic telegraph,” by the middle of the twentieth century the phone system had grown into something extraordinary, a web of cutting-edge switching machines and human operators that linked together millions of people like never before. But the network had a billion-dollar flaw, and once people discovered it, things would never be the same. Exploding the Phone tells this story in full for the first time. It traces the birth of long-distance communication and the telephone, the rise of AT&T’s monopoly, the creation of the sophisticated machines that made it all work, and the discovery of Ma Bell’s Achilles’ heel. Phil Lapsley expertly weaves together the clandestine underground of “phone phreaks” who turned the network into their electronic playground, the mobsters who exploited its flaws to avoid the feds, the explosion of telephone hacking in the counterculture, and the war between the phreaks, the phone company, and the FBI. The product of extensive original research, Exploding the Phone is a groundbreaking, captivating book that “does for the phone phreaks what Steven Levy’s Hackers did for computer pioneers” (Boing Boing). “An authoritative, jaunty and enjoyable account of their sometimes comical, sometimes impressive and sometimes disquieting misdeeds.” —The Wall Street Journal “Brilliantly researched.” —The Atlantic “A fantastically fun romp through the world of early phone hackers, who sought free long distance, and in the end helped launch the computer era.” —The Seattle Times

Talking with Serial Killers: Dead Men Talking

Author: Christopher Berry-Dee
Publisher: Kings Road Publishing
ISBN: 1843586436
Category : True Crime
Languages : en
Pages : 236

Book Description
Leading crime expert Christopher Berry-Dee gained the trust of some of the most infamous convicted killers, having corresponded with them and even entered their prison lairs to discuss their horrific crimes in detail. In this book, he presents six unforgettable prisoners and allows them to tell their stories, as well as giving the details and background of their terrifying cases - making this a must-read for aficionados of the genre and anyone fascinated by the extremes of human behaviour. Beyond the headlines, once the drama of the courtroom has subsided and the prison gates have been locked behind these killers for good, Talking With Serial Killers: Dead Men Talking allows the reader to get up close and personal with torturers, sexual psychopaths and mass murderers, to read the stories that are rarely heard and get the last word from some of the world's most pitiless killers.

The Myth of the Holy Cow

Author: D. N. Jha
Publisher: Verso Books
ISBN: 178960933X
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 191

Book Description
Hugely controversial upon its publication in India, this book has already been banned by the Hyderabad Civil Court and the author's life has been threatened. Jha argues against the historical sanctity of the cow in India, in an illuminating response to the prevailing attitudes about beef that have been fiercely supported by the current Hindu right-wing government and the fundamentalist groups backing it.

Firewalls Don't Stop Dragons

Author: Carey Parker
Publisher: Apress
ISBN: 1484238524
Category : Computers
Languages : en
Pages : 411

Book Description
Rely on this practical, end-to-end guide on cyber safety and online security written expressly for a non-technical audience. You will have just what you need to protect yourself—step by step, without judgment, and with as little jargon as possible. Just how secure is your computer right now? You probably don't really know. Computers and the Internet have revolutionized the modern world, but if you're like most people, you have no clue how these things work and don't know the real threats. Protecting your computer is like defending a medieval castle. While moats, walls, drawbridges, and castle guards can be effective, you'd go broke trying to build something dragon-proof. This book is not about protecting yourself from a targeted attack by the NSA; it's about armoring yourself against common hackers and mass surveillance. There are dozens of no-brainer things we all should be doing to protect our computers and safeguard our data—just like wearing a seat belt, installing smoke alarms, and putting on sunscreen. Author Carey Parker has structured this book to give you maximum benefit with minimum effort. If you just want to know what to do, every chapter has a complete checklist with step-by-step instructions and pictures. The book contains more than 150 tips to make you and your family safer. It includes: Added steps for Windows 10 (Spring 2018) and Mac OS X High Sierra Expanded coverage on mobile device safety Expanded coverage on safety for kids online More than 150 tips with complete step-by-step instructions and pictures What You’ll Learn Solve your password problems once and for all Browse the web safely and with confidence Block online tracking and dangerous ads Choose the right antivirus software for you Send files and messages securely Set up secure home networking Conduct secure shopping and banking online Lock down social media accounts Create automated backups of all your devices Manage your home computers Use your smartphone and tablet safely Safeguard your kids online And more! Who This Book Is For Those who use computers and mobile devices, but don’t really know (or frankly care) how they work. This book is for people who just want to know what they need to do to protect themselves—step by step, without judgment, and with as little jargon as possible.

Fear is a Cow

Author: Ali Jimale Ahmed
Publisher: Red Sea Press(NJ)
ISBN:
Category : Poetry
Languages : en
Pages : 110

Book Description

Why Can the Dead Do Such Great Things?

Author: Robert Bartlett
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 0691159130
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 806

Book Description
From its earliest centuries, one of the most notable features of Christianity has been the veneration of the saints—the holy dead. This ambitious history tells the fascinating story of the cult of the saints from its origins in the second-century days of the Christian martyrs to the Protestant Reformation. Robert Bartlett examines all of the most important aspects of the saints—including miracles, relics, pilgrimages, shrines, and the saints' role in the calendar, literature, and art. The book explores the central role played by the bodies and body parts of saints, and the special treatment these relics received. From the routes, dangers, and rewards of pilgrimage, to the saints' impact on everyday life, Bartlett's account is an unmatched examination of an important and intriguing part of the religious life of the past—as well as the present.

The Reality Game

Author: Samuel Woolley
Publisher: PublicAffairs
ISBN: 1541768248
Category : Computers
Languages : en
Pages : 272

Book Description
Fake news posts and Twitter trolls were just the beginning. What will happen when misinformation moves from our social media feeds into our everyday lives? Online disinformation stormed our political process in 2016 and has only worsened since. Yet as Samuel Woolley shows in this urgent book, it may pale in comparison to what's to come: humanlike automated voice systems, machine learning, "deepfake" AI-edited videos and images, interactive memes, virtual reality, and more. These technologies have the power not just to manipulate our politics, but to make us doubt our eyes and ears and even feelings. Deeply researched and compellingly written, The Reality Game describes the profound impact these technologies will have on our lives. Each new invention built without regard for its consequences edges us further into this digital dystopia. Yet Woolley does not despair. Instead, he argues pointedly for a new culture of innovation, one built around accountability and especially transparency. With social media dragging us into a never-ending culture war, we must learn to stop fighting and instead prevent future manipulation. This book shows how we can use our new tools not to control people but to empower them.