Product Description

A true-life account of computer espionage tells of a year-long single-handed hunt for a computer thief known as "Hunter," a hacker who stole sensitive security and military information from American computer files to sell to Soviet intelligence agents. Reprint.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #298955 in Books
• Published on: 2000-10-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 416 pages

Review
"Cosmopolitan"Nothing short of fascinating...Even if you don't know a byte from a bagel, "The Cuckoo's Egg" will grip you on page one and hold you as ferociously as the best mystery...It's the intensely human, often funny voice of the man on the trail that makes this book so wonderful.

Customer Reviews

You've lost 75 cents of computer time? Panic!
Spy stories are great fun. James Bond, Tom Clancy... And Now Cliff Stoll, with only one minor difference.

This one's true.

In the Eighties, Clifford Stoll ran out of money for his research into Astronomy at the University of Berkeley and was 'recycled' into the lab's computer division. A couple of days into his new job, his boss brought an interesting problem to his attention, their accounting software - logging, and charging for, time on the mainframe - was missing 75 cents. Would he like to look into it?

A year later Clifford Stoll had tracked a hacker across half the planet, through dozens of supposedly secure military and civillian networks, he'd interfaced with a dozen or more three-letter agencies (CIA, FBI, NSA, CID and more) and become one of the world's most respected experts in computer security.

I wish I had half the brains this man has. I'd reccomend this book to anyone with even a passing interest in the internet, computer security, networks and other computer related hardware. The book'll leave you feeling like an idiot, but you'll love every second.

Surprisingly Relevant
Despite the age of this book, the basic concepts of hackers, viruses and worms are surprisingly similar now to what they were in the late 1980's, the period when The Cuckoo's Egg is set. The big difference between then and now is the incredible lack of interest in computer espionage from the various US intelligence agencies which the author encountered.

The story of this book is largely Clifford Stoll's battle to get the FBI, CIA and numerous other agencies to recognise what was going on and act upon it. This despite the fact that the target of the hackers were predominantly military computers.

Amazing story of persistence and imperfection of technology
This book was worth every moment of the 3 odd hours I spent reading it (or more or less depending on your reading speed) and worth every penny you may spend on it (Lucky me, I got it as a present from an old friend!).

In my view, it is not a spy saga, as another reviewer refers to it. Instead it is a fascinating celebration of human curiosity. It is a gripping account of the dogged persistence in problem-solving, that separates an ordinary techie from a brilliant one.

Written in a simple style, it does not seek to alienate the non-techie reader, adding to its appeal. More intriguing is the fact that it is a real story from an era when the web was not as evolved as we know it now. In that it also becomes an interesting historical narrative of some of major technological developments in that era. To enjoy this book would take only some curiosity, that will take you through to the end of the story and some desire to see a challenge carried through to its deserved conclusion. Highly recommended.