An up close and personal look at cyber espionage and digital spycraft
In Cyber Recon: My Life in Cyber Espionage and Ransomware Negotiation, 30-year cybersecurity veteran Kurtis Minder delivers a fascinating exploration of real-world cyber espionage in some of the most dangerous places on the Internet. Through his experiences watching and hunting cybercriminals as varied as lone wolfs, the Russian mafia, and other official and unofficial nation-state hackers, he explains how cyber espionage is performed, the tools and skills that people like him use all the time, and the consequences of engaging with cybercriminals on a daily basis.
Kurtis teaches you that the same operational security that keeps him and his team of spies safe will keep you and your organization's secrets safer too. And you'll explore whether fake personas on the internet are always bad or are there legitimate business uses for Romanian speaking sock puppets? You'll also discover critical lessons that Minder has learned as he's led his digital risk company, GroupSense, through many of the most dramatic incidents of online crime of the last few decades.
Inside the book:
Original profiles of cyber espionage and negotiation professionals so you're learning from Jax Scott, Jon DiMaggio, Jason Ingalls, Beau Woods, Brye Ravattine and many more, with QR-code links to extended YouTube interviews An original, non-technical primer on the people that populate the cyber risk landscape and the methods they use to carry out attacks Steps to avoid becoming a target of Lockbit, BlackMatter, NotPetya, and next year's most dangerous ransomware as well as how to minimize the business damage when you are a victim How the intersection of business negotiation and hostage negotiation relates to high-stakes ransomware negotiations The fast-moving transformation generative AI is unleashing in cyber attacks and defense
An inside look at an endlessly interesting corner of the field of cybersecurity, Cyber Recon is also a must-read for anyone interested in spycraft, technology, hacking, or digital entrepreneurship.
By:
Kurtis Minder
Imprint: John Wiley & Sons Inc
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions:
Height: 231mm,
Width: 158mm,
Spine: 23mm
Weight: 454g
ISBN: 9781394334612
ISBN 10: 1394334613
Pages: 272
Publication Date: 31 July 2025
Audience:
General/trade
,
ELT Advanced
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming
Foreword vii About the Author xi Acknowledgments xiii Introduction 1 Chapter 1 Why Spy on Bad Guys? 11 Chapter 2 FFS DNM 33 Chapter 3 Cyber Espionage 101 61 Chapter 4 Whodat? 83 Chapter 5 OPSEC or Die 107 Chapter 6 How Not to Go to Jail, Hell, or Worse 137 Chapter 7 Negotiating with the Enemy 161 Chapter 8 You Don’t Have to Be a Doctor to Know How Not to Die 191 Chapter 9 Robots, Digital Money, and Teleportation 213 Chapter 10 Digital Novichok 229 Index 245
KURTIS MINDER is the CEO and Founder of GroupSense, recently acquired by Cognyte, a leading provider of digital risk solutions. He has 30 years’ experience in cybersecurity, having advised public sector security committees, universities, and technology companies. He has negotiated and resolved major ransomware incidents around the world.
