The Practice of Network Security: Deployment Strategies for Production Environments

Chapter 3. Understanding Types of Attacks

MacGyver was a television series on ABC in the 1980s and early 1990s. On the show MacGyver, the main character, would come up with innovative ways to stop his foes. These methods usually involved using everyday household items to create bombs, and other things that exploded. The creators of MacGyver, wisely opting not to be sued, always left out at least one critical step in the bomb-making process.

The same rules cannot apply to a network security book. It is important to have all of the information possible, so administrators can understand the tools being used. The better attack tools are understood, the easier it will be to defend against the incursions.

The goal of this chapter is to provide network ...