BackTrack 4: Assuring Security - NEW Book

BackTrack 4: Assuring Security by Penetration Testing [Paperback]

What do you guys think of this Book? it will be released soon in about 2 to 3 weeks. It should help supplement for the OSCP exam right? It is pretty small under 400pgs

Amazon.com: BackTrack 4: Assuring Security by Penetration Testing (9781849513944): Shakeel Ali, Tedi Heriyanto: Books

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Bl8ckr0uter

chrisone wrote: »

BackTrack 4: Assuring Security by Penetration Testing [Paperback]

What do you guys think of this Book? it will be released soon in about 2 to 3 weeks. It should help supplement for the OSCP exam right? It is pretty small under 400pgs

Amazon.com: BackTrack 4: Assuring Security by Penetration Testing (9781849513944): Shakeel Ali, Tedi Heriyanto: Books

Looks like a good jumping off point but at 400 pages, it will probably only scratch the surface of backtrack.

docrice

Thanks for bringing this up. I might have to check this one out.

chrisone

No problem, i just wished there were materials coming out for CEH v7 as well. I am interested in the two. I know the knowledge in the OSCP exam is probably deeper than the CEH, but the OSCP is hardly recognized in my opinion.

JDMurray

chrisone wrote: »

I know the knowledge in the OSCP exam is probably deeper than the CEH, but the OSCP is hardly recognized in my opinion.

The OSCP is extremely hands-on and is recognized by people in the application pen testing community--which is a very small and highly specialized community indeed.

powerfool

chrisone wrote: »

No problem, i just wished there were materials coming out for CEH v7 as well. I am interested in the two. I know the knowledge in the OSCP exam is probably deeper than the CEH, but the OSCP is hardly recognized in my opinion.

The CEHv6 materials are more than adequate for v7.

chrisone

@JDMURRY - yeah your right the community of the OSCP is very highly skilled individuals. From our perspective or at least people around here, we know this. I personally will end up tackling the exam in the future after my cisco exams are completed, but I am just curious if it is worth the trouble or are there other exams that cover the same material/concepts that are better recognized?

From my perspective and personal goals, i try to mix both my technological learning interests with the best advantage to make more money. It is a hard balance, some certs have less knowledge than others but are more recognized by name and vice versa. I know this, so that is why i ask, to have the best options and "data" about which path i want to lean into.

Like they say, time is money, and like all of us, i have little time hahaha

powerfool wrote: »

The CEHv6 materials are more than adequate for v7.

really? has this been really confirmed by test takers of the CEHv7? Ahhh i just deleted all my CEHv6 study books off my amazon wish list LOL

If it isnt too much trouble do you have any recommendations for the CEHv7 study material?

Thanks guys for your valuable input.

NightShade03

chrisone wrote: »

@JDMURRY - yeah your right the community of the OSCP is very highly skilled individuals. From our perspective or at least people around here, we know this. I personally will end up tackling the exam in the future after my cisco exams are completed, but I am just curious if it is worth the trouble or are there other exams that cover the same material/concepts that are better recognized?

I think it heavily depends on where you "end goal" is that will determine the value of the OSCP and similar exams. Unless you want to move into the niche of pen testing you are right that people probably won't value the OSCP cert very much.

Time is money and at some point you do need to make the trade off in determining how much time to invest in studying for something if it won't help you in the long run.

JDMurray

Don't forget that certifications are a primary means of self-study. It's good to get certifications that no hiring manager cares about if you learn a lot in the process. People are so focused on passing exams and getting the paper that they forget part of the purpose of the certification journey is to learn and retain knowledge in addition to demonstrating it on an exam. You can also study for a cert and never take the exam (like I did for the OSCP), and simply use what you learned.

slinuxuzer

JDMurray wrote: »

Don't forget that certifications are a primary means of self-study. It's good to get certifications that no hiring manager cares about if you learn a lot in the process. People are so focused on passing exams and getting the paper that they forget part of the purpose of the certification journey is to learn and retain knowledge in addition to demonstrating it on an exam. You can also study for a cert and never take the exam (like I did for the OSCP), and simply use what you learned.

Well said, that is very likely what I will end up doing OSCP wise, I would love to attempt this exam if I could find the time, but between trying to learn virtualization and my work duties getting crazier and crazier it's unlikely, that said I just ordered this book and I think it's a great idea.

As far as it not being a hardcore deep dive thats fine with me, I think it's going to be just what the doctor ordered for me to brush up on my pen testing skills that I have been neglecting.

Thanks JD for posting this, no telling how long it would have taken me to find it.

chrisone

actually i found the book , but thats not the point

JDMurray, what did you use to study for the OSCP? what materials would you recommend?

JDMurray

chrisone wrote: »

JDMurray, what did you use to study for the OSCP? what materials would you recommend?

Have a look at this post: http://www.techexams.net/forums/security-certifications/50001-oscp.html#post378074

For more info, use the advanced search feature to search the Security Certifications forums for "OSCP".

slinuxuzer

chrisone wrote: »

actually i found the book , but thats not the point

JDMurray, what did you use to study for the OSCP? what materials would you recommend?

Yea just realized that, sorry I was in a hurry yesterday when I was reading through this.

Thanks very much for posting it.

JDMurray

PACKT Publishing has given me the opportunity to review the book, BackTrack 4: Assuring Security by Penetration Testing, on my blog. I should have the review posted by next Monday. Much of the book is on pen testing, so I'm looking forward to working through the material using BT4 running in VMware Workstation and using other VMs as targets. It should be fun.

3944OS_BackTrack%204%20Assuring%20Security%20by%20Penetration%20Testing.jpg

BackTrack 4: Assuring Security by Penetration Testing on Amazon.com

chrisone

Wow that is awesome news! i am looking forward to reading your review! maybe they will post the review on amazon.com!

JDMurray

chrisone wrote: »

maybe they will post the review on amazon.com!

That's a thought. I can certainly post a summary review on Amazon. I don't know if Amazon would allow a link to my full review on TE.

chrisone

JDMurray wrote: »

That's a thought. I can certainly post a summary review on Amazon. I don't know if Amazon would allow a link to my full review on TE.

Well if not, then maybe a brief summarization of your full review can suffice. You can be the first to post as i dont think anyone will review it within the next two months. It would be a nice addition to the book as I am sure PACKT will appreciate the comments. I guess depending on what side your review leans towards hahaha you know what i mean .....

JDMurray

According to Amazon's Customer Review Guidelines, URLs external to Amazon.com are not permitted in customer reviews.

slinuxuzer

Mine just came in the mail, I'm off tomorrow. If I beat jd with a review am I l33t ?

JDMurray

slinuxuzer wrote: »

Mine just came in the mail, I'm off tomorrow. If I beat jd with a review am I l33t ?

Actually, I downloaded the PDF two days ago, so no l33t 4 U!!

chrisone

slinuxuzer wrote: »

Mine just came in the mail, I'm off tomorrow. If I beat jd with a review am I l33t ?

haha am i missing something here but the release date says May 11th 2011? Is that just a typo on amazon? Possibly since slinuxuser confirmed his book arrived already.

I need to learn linux first, i am such a noob at linux that i wont be able to implement any of the tasks in this book

ahhh not enough time!

JDMurray

chrisone wrote: »

haha am i missing something here but the release date says May 11th 2011? Is that just a typo on amazon? Possibly since slinuxuser confirmed his book arrived already.

I don't know if it's shipping or not. I received a reviewer's copy, so the books are definitely printed and downloadable as epub and PDF. Maybe ordering directly from the publisher will get you the book now rather than waiting later to get Amazon's discount.

chrisone wrote: »

I need to learn linux first, i am such a noob at linux that i wont be able to implement any of the tasks in this book ahhh not enough time!

The book guides you through using the Linux command line to get things done. I've only just started reading the book, but it looks like a good way for people to get an initial introduction to Linux.

slinuxuzer

I actually ordered from amazon, I noticed the release date here, I figured I'd place a pre order, but it said get it by the 29th (actually came a day early) just read chapter one, if your just getting up and running its gonna make it a lot easier, I did it the hard way.

NightShade03

chrisone wrote: »

haha am i missing something here but the release date says May 11th 2011? Is that just a typo on amazon? Possibly since slinuxuser confirmed his book arrived already.

I need to learn linux first, i am such a noob at linux that i wont be able to implement any of the tasks in this book ahhh not enough time!

Amazon's release date is only a guideline and an estimation for when the book will be in stock in their warehouse. My book was suppose to be "released" on May 1st but they got the shipment early and started sending out books last week.

chrisone

JDMurray wrote: »

I don't know if it's shipping or not. I received a reviewer's copy, so the books are definitely printed and downloadable as epub and PDF. Maybe ordering directly from the publisher will get you the book now rather than waiting later to get Amazon's discount.

The book guides you through using the Linux command line to get things done. I've only just started reading the book, but it looks like a good way for people to get an initial introduction to Linux.

Wow now i cant wait to read your review. If this is the case about being a decent guide into linux, and your review of the book turns out to be positive for the content, i wont hesitate to purchase the book right away.

Along with Amazon.com: CompTIA Linux+ Complete Study Guide: Exams LX0-101 and LX0-102 (9780470888452): Roderick W. Smith: Books
by the way is this a good book for beginners? Not really going to take the cert either or study study this material or practice the test questions with this book. Just looking for something that will teach me linux well enough.

Ahhh the summer is going to be filled with good times!

JDMurray

chrisone wrote: »

If this is the case about being a decent guide into linux,

I didn't say that. I said the book looks like it guides you through the steps of using the command line for tasks that you will commonly perform while using BT4. This book alone won't make you a fundamentally-strong Linux user.

And Linux+ is an entry-level cert, so any Linux+ book should be good for a beginner to tackle. I've never seen the Linux for Dummies book, but it might be a worth a look-see too.

NightShade03

JDMurray wrote: »

I've never seen the Linux for Dummies book, but it might be a worth a look-see too.

No no...that book is def not a good choice. The Rodrick book is good to start off with....as is the LPIC in a nutshell books. You may not need to take the exams but the presentation and layout of material for linux n00bs is really good.

chrisone

Thanks guys, i dont want to run this post off on linux books for noobs, i am sure i can search for that on the forums. Thanks gentlemen! i appreciate your valuable input on the subject. I will do more research down the road, i need to pass my CCDP in a couple weeks and CCNA security over the summer.