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This Machine Kills Secrets: How WikiLeakers, Cypherpunks, and Hacktivists Aim to Free the World's Information Hardcover – Bargain Price, September 13, 2012
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Editorial Reviews
Review
“Greenberg masterfully portrays a new reality. Radical transparency for firms and governments is not just a decision but a technological fact of life.”
—Don Tapscott, bestselling author of The Naked Corporation and, most recently, Macrowikinomics
—Don Tapscott, bestselling author of The Naked Corporation and, most recently, Macrowikinomics
“A must-read for those seeking to understand the decades-long struggle between openness and secrecy, anonymity and attribution—and why that might be the most important struggle of the modern era. Meticulously researched, Greenberg provides first-hand accounts of the eccentric pioneers who are coding around censorship, repression, and even traditional law. He also captures the relentless distributed nature of the movement that’s powering it all.”
—Daniel Suarez, New York Times bestselling author of Daemon and Kill Decision
—Daniel Suarez, New York Times bestselling author of Daemon and Kill Decision
“Andy Greenberg shows us why cryptography has to be the marrow of the Internet. People who have no technical knowledge along with those who live and breathe bytes will gain a new vision of an invisible army of characters….This book will be one of the most important books of the decade.”
—Birgitta Jonsdottir, Member of the Icelandic Parliament and Chairperson of the International Modern Media Institution
—Birgitta Jonsdottir, Member of the Icelandic Parliament and Chairperson of the International Modern Media Institution
“This is the story of a revolution in societal transparency. It’s an expose of the characters who have put secrets in peril. For those that seek transparency, it’s riveting tale. For those who must keep secrets, be warned: This book holds up a mirror to your worst fears.”
—Hugh Thompson, founder and CEO of People Security, Adjunct Professor, Computer Science, Columbia University
—Hugh Thompson, founder and CEO of People Security, Adjunct Professor, Computer Science, Columbia University
“Greenberg’s vivid storytelling makes the forces that culminated in Wikileaks — the people, the politics, and especially the technology — come alive.”
—Bruce Schneier, author of Liars and Outliers and Applied Cryptography
—Bruce Schneier, author of Liars and Outliers and Applied Cryptography
“Andy Greenberg tells a vivid story that weaves together compelling characters and powerful technology that could change politics more profoundly than any technology since the printing press. By the time I was finished, I was both inspired and terrified.”
—David Bacon, IBM, Watson Research Center
—David Bacon, IBM, Watson Research Center
“Points to a future in which few corporate and government secrets are safe. This is the book you must read to understand the WikiLeaks phenomenon and the growing struggle over the most sensitive institutional secrets.”
— Stephen Solomon, Director of the Business and Economic Reporting Program, New York University Carter School of Journalism
— Stephen Solomon, Director of the Business and Economic Reporting Program, New York University Carter School of Journalism
"Computer hackers haven’t been made into heroes like this since Stieg Larsson created Lisbeth Salander—and luckily Greenberg shares a bit of Larsson’s flair for suspense, too." — SLATE
Greenberg delves eloquently into the magicians of the all-powerful technology that shatters the confidentiality of any and all state secrets while tapping into issues of personal privacy. — PUBLISHER’S WEEKLY
While lawmakers and law enforcers struggle with the philosophy and practicality of these issues, the people Greenberg profiles have made up their minds, and they are a few steps ahead. If you’re wondering who they are and why they feel so strongly, look no further than this book. — NEW SCIENTIST
“…fascinating and well-researched.” –WALL STREET JOURNAL
“Forbes magazine journalist Andy Greenberg takes readers on a terrific and revealing — if considerably unsettling — investigation into the shadowy war rooms behind our computer screens.” –CLEVELAND PLAIN DEALER
"A globe trotting exploration into the heart of the contentious world of brilliant, eccentric and erratic game changers who have taken the tools at hand and turned them into powerful weapons that can — and have in some cases — altered the course of history…Greenberg went looking for a story and nailed it." — PAPER MAGAZINE
"A series of moving and deeply complex portraits… In all, Greenberg has created a seriously riveting read." — CAPITAL NEW YORK
Gripping…For all the technical detail (which Greenberg excels at explaining), this book is still about human feats and failings, idealism, trust and betrayal. — IRISH TIMES
Greenberg delves eloquently into the magicians of the all-powerful technology that shatters the confidentiality of any and all state secrets while tapping into issues of personal privacy. — PUBLISHER’S WEEKLY
While lawmakers and law enforcers struggle with the philosophy and practicality of these issues, the people Greenberg profiles have made up their minds, and they are a few steps ahead. If you’re wondering who they are and why they feel so strongly, look no further than this book. — NEW SCIENTIST
“…fascinating and well-researched.” –WALL STREET JOURNAL
“Forbes magazine journalist Andy Greenberg takes readers on a terrific and revealing — if considerably unsettling — investigation into the shadowy war rooms behind our computer screens.” –CLEVELAND PLAIN DEALER
"A globe trotting exploration into the heart of the contentious world of brilliant, eccentric and erratic game changers who have taken the tools at hand and turned them into powerful weapons that can — and have in some cases — altered the course of history…Greenberg went looking for a story and nailed it." — PAPER MAGAZINE
"A series of moving and deeply complex portraits… In all, Greenberg has created a seriously riveting read." — CAPITAL NEW YORK
Gripping…For all the technical detail (which Greenberg excels at explaining), this book is still about human feats and failings, idealism, trust and betrayal. — IRISH TIMES
About the Author
ANDY GREENBERG is a staff writer for Forbes magazine, focusing on technology, information security and digital civil liberties. His Forbes story on WikiLeaks and the future of information leaks in late 2010 was the first magazine cover story to feature Julian Assange. He lives in Brooklyn, New York, with his wife, filmmaker Malika Zouhali-Worrall.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
23 of 24 people found the following review helpful
By
Miguel Morales
on September 18, 2012
Format: Hardcover
Comment
Sending feedback...
Andy Greenberg crafts an incredibly compelling tale that begins with the historic Pentagon Papers leak and moves through the next four decades of internet activism, hacking and cyberleaking, always keeping the colorful cast of hacktivists front and center.
It's amazing that he managed to interview so many of these (rightly) secretive folks, including Wikileaks' Julian Assange. What's more surprising is that he can convey the principles of hacking and cybersecurity clearly and make those subjects fascinating at the same time.
Greenberg manages to transform the tug of war between prying government agencies and the internet freedom fighters who want to make our lives private again into something compulsively readable, operatic even. The way he weaves different storylines and manages to neither lionize the hacktivists and pillory the state is commendable.
Everything about this book--its writing, its scope and reporting, its ability to show how central hacking and privacy is to our world's future--is tops.
It's amazing that he managed to interview so many of these (rightly) secretive folks, including Wikileaks' Julian Assange. What's more surprising is that he can convey the principles of hacking and cybersecurity clearly and make those subjects fascinating at the same time.
Greenberg manages to transform the tug of war between prying government agencies and the internet freedom fighters who want to make our lives private again into something compulsively readable, operatic even. The way he weaves different storylines and manages to neither lionize the hacktivists and pillory the state is commendable.
Everything about this book--its writing, its scope and reporting, its ability to show how central hacking and privacy is to our world's future--is tops.
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19 of 20 people found the following review helpful
By
Timothy C May
on September 14, 2012
Format: Hardcover
Verified Purchase
1 Comment
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A gripping read! Very well-told. And for the parts and personalities I am directly familiar with, accurate. (A few tiny errors, a few compressions of events, etc., but generally accurate.)
I had a copy on pre-order with Amazon, so it arrived on Sept. 13th. I took it to the County Fair with me and read big chunks of the book while sitting on a bench.
The style of telling parts of life stories (Ellsberg, Zimmerman, Assange, Manning, me, etc.) and then interleaving with the stories of others, gradually moving forward in time, was especially interesting. Almost like a novel, or a musical piece, with themes, counterpoint, fugue-like developments. It gave a panorama of the themes and (some of) the players from the 1960s to the present, with an underlying motif.
I haven't really gotten to the second half of the book, except by skipping around and peeking. It seems more disjointed. Perhaps because I wasn't active in those events, or perhaps because the outcome just hasn't been written yet. Or maybe it's those crazy kids! The level of back-stabbing in Cypherpunks was not a fraction of what seems to have happened in the Wikileaks denouement.
Well done! It reminds me of Tracy Kidder's "The Soul of a New Machine" in a lot of ways.
I had a copy on pre-order with Amazon, so it arrived on Sept. 13th. I took it to the County Fair with me and read big chunks of the book while sitting on a bench.
The style of telling parts of life stories (Ellsberg, Zimmerman, Assange, Manning, me, etc.) and then interleaving with the stories of others, gradually moving forward in time, was especially interesting. Almost like a novel, or a musical piece, with themes, counterpoint, fugue-like developments. It gave a panorama of the themes and (some of) the players from the 1960s to the present, with an underlying motif.
I haven't really gotten to the second half of the book, except by skipping around and peeking. It seems more disjointed. Perhaps because I wasn't active in those events, or perhaps because the outcome just hasn't been written yet. Or maybe it's those crazy kids! The level of back-stabbing in Cypherpunks was not a fraction of what seems to have happened in the Wikileaks denouement.
Well done! It reminds me of Tracy Kidder's "The Soul of a New Machine" in a lot of ways.
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful
By
Ilya Grigorik
on December 16, 2012
Format: Hardcover
1 Comment
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I'll rank this book on two axis. The first is the historical narrative, which offers a great perspective on the evolution of how, and what it means to "leak information". The book starts with the Pentagon Papers incident, and then moves forward through several decades of tools, crypto, hacking, activism, and cyberleaking developments. In the process, you'll be introduced to all the major individuals who have left their footprints on the field - this part deserves a solid 5/5 stars. Great, engaging stories and well written.
The second axis is the technical one: here, the reader is left in the dark. The book covers the basics, but does so superficially. Now, this book is not meant to be a technical how-to, but given the subject, I fear this is an oversight - the book appears to give you an explanation, but there are too many gaps. The book should have made clear that these explanations are limited, at best, and should not be relied on. Don't read it for the technology, but do read it for the history and the personal stories.
The second axis is the technical one: here, the reader is left in the dark. The book covers the basics, but does so superficially. Now, this book is not meant to be a technical how-to, but given the subject, I fear this is an oversight - the book appears to give you an explanation, but there are too many gaps. The book should have made clear that these explanations are limited, at best, and should not be relied on. Don't read it for the technology, but do read it for the history and the personal stories.
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19 of 24 people found the following review helpful
By
John Young
on September 13, 2012
Format: Kindle Edition
Verified Purchase
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9 October 2012
After re-reading on Kindle the book is even better. Searching, cross-linking and assembling one or more of Greenberg's characters provides different narratives than his unsettling multiple disjointedness. Read Tim May next to Julian Assange, Mudge next to John Gilmore, Adrian Lamo next to Jacob Appelbaum, Daniel Domscheit-Berg next to Phil Zimmermann. With Kindle these juxtapositions, and others, your own book can be read next to Greenberg's. The book should be put on the web for many variable readings -- it is that valuable to mine, reconfigure, rewrite, argue with its characters and author.
-----
This is a well-researched book that doesn't settle for glib exploitation of fictional ex nihilo WikiLeaks singularity.
Andy Greenberg has invented a gallery of "characters" (me among them) from selected debris of interviews for "This Machine Kills Secrets," an exceptionally informative account of the technical and philosophical global battle for control of communication between lock-step hierarchies of authorities armed with military-grade secrecy and armored with lie-dispensing public relations and diversely distributed, far smarter and agile, anarchical dissidents intending to swarm and undermine official "full-spectrum dominance" of information.
These challengers of abusive control of information see official secrecy as destructive of democracy and unfettered, unspied-upon communication among the citizenry. Their main weapon against the Big Iron Arms of authority (military, espionage, legislation, finance) is pervasive public encryption to protect personal privacy, identity and communication -- supplemented by creative ways to work around authoritative information control and censorship.Read more ›
After re-reading on Kindle the book is even better. Searching, cross-linking and assembling one or more of Greenberg's characters provides different narratives than his unsettling multiple disjointedness. Read Tim May next to Julian Assange, Mudge next to John Gilmore, Adrian Lamo next to Jacob Appelbaum, Daniel Domscheit-Berg next to Phil Zimmermann. With Kindle these juxtapositions, and others, your own book can be read next to Greenberg's. The book should be put on the web for many variable readings -- it is that valuable to mine, reconfigure, rewrite, argue with its characters and author.
-----
This is a well-researched book that doesn't settle for glib exploitation of fictional ex nihilo WikiLeaks singularity.
Andy Greenberg has invented a gallery of "characters" (me among them) from selected debris of interviews for "This Machine Kills Secrets," an exceptionally informative account of the technical and philosophical global battle for control of communication between lock-step hierarchies of authorities armed with military-grade secrecy and armored with lie-dispensing public relations and diversely distributed, far smarter and agile, anarchical dissidents intending to swarm and undermine official "full-spectrum dominance" of information.
These challengers of abusive control of information see official secrecy as destructive of democracy and unfettered, unspied-upon communication among the citizenry. Their main weapon against the Big Iron Arms of authority (military, espionage, legislation, finance) is pervasive public encryption to protect personal privacy, identity and communication -- supplemented by creative ways to work around authoritative information control and censorship.Read more ›
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