Scan barcode
A review by tkadlec
Countdown to Zero Day: Stuxnet and the Launch of the World's First Digital Weapon by Kim Zetter
4.0
A fascinating and thorough account of the Stuxent virus. Frankly, the whole story would seem very at home some modern day action/techno-thriller movie. Zetter does an excellent job of walking you through the discover and gradual unveiling of Stuxent: detailing how traces of the virus was discovered, the clues each little piece left about its origin, functionality and ultimate goal. Given the depth she goes into regarding the functionality of the virus, she does a pretty good job of making it approachable even if you don’t have prior technical knowledge.
Somewhere around chapter 16 or 17 it does get a tab bit repetitive as she spends the bulk of the time putting things you’ve already learned into a clear chronological order. The final chapter, however, is a very important read. Once you get past the impressive workings of the virus, the messy follow-up discussion that has been largely lacking is the implications and consequences—ethically and technically—of opening “Pandora’s digital box”, as she puts it. Some think they're severe, some downplay the risk of a digital attack (personally, I think those folks just lack imagination), but no matter the stance, the discussion needs to be given much higher priority.
Somewhere around chapter 16 or 17 it does get a tab bit repetitive as she spends the bulk of the time putting things you’ve already learned into a clear chronological order. The final chapter, however, is a very important read. Once you get past the impressive workings of the virus, the messy follow-up discussion that has been largely lacking is the implications and consequences—ethically and technically—of opening “Pandora’s digital box”, as she puts it. Some think they're severe, some downplay the risk of a digital attack (personally, I think those folks just lack imagination), but no matter the stance, the discussion needs to be given much higher priority.