"With a mix of interviews and research, Tidy gives us valuable insights into the mindsets behind and causes of this hacking activity - how teens get into it, how some manage to turn their lives around (often going into cybersecurity), while others become career criminals."--Popular Science "A disturbing study investigates, and interviews, the depraved young hackers wreaking havoc online . An illuminating and often scary book."--The Daily Telegraph "Joe Tidy has a gift for uncovering stories others can''t and turning them into something unforgettable. This book doesn''t just tell a story. It grabs you, pulls you in, and doesn''t let go."--Jack Rhysider, Darknet Diaries podcast "A wake-up call to governments, law enforcement, educators and parents about how teenage boys are being radicalised online to engage in cybercrime."--Jamie MacColl, RUSI "Harassment, theft, death.
Ctrl + Alt + Chaos captures the rise of nihilism and the devastating effects of a generation of young men and boys socially adrift. It''s a testament to what happens when a significant subset of the population lacks purpose and community. These ''invisible'' criminals believe in nothing and embrace chaos as sport. This book is a wake-up call to an ill-equipped justice system and a general population all too dismissive of predators they cannot see. We should consider ourselves warned."--Anna Akbari, author of There Is No Ethan: How Three Women Caught America''s Biggest Catfish "In Ctrl + Alt + Chaos, Joe Tidy exposes dark Web hideaways where callous teens wreak havoc for profit--and sport. It''s a wake-up call by one of journalism''s top cybercrime sleuths."--Jim Popkin, author of Code Name Blue Wren: The True Story of America''s Most Dangerous Female Spy--and the Sister She Betrayed "Joe Tidy has a gift for uncovering stories others can''t and turning them into something unforgettable.
This book doesn''t just tell a story. It grabs you, pulls you in, and doesn''t let go."--Jack Rhysider, host of the Darknet Diaries podcast "It is a dark story and an illustrative one. Tidy reveals, through blessedly uncomplicated prose, how hacking developed from being a relatively noble pursuit in the 1980s into something conducted by 21st-century sociopaths who want to ''inflict hurt and harm for their amusement, pleasure and power.'' Read it--and update your computer''s security settings."--Prospect "Joe Tidy''s gripping true-crime account of the world of young hackers, particularly a group known as ''The Lizard Squad,'' reminds us of what menace can lurk behind those teenage eyes glued to video game screens and consoles. Ctrl+Alt+Chaos ranks among the best books about this crazy new breed of criminal -- the cyberattacker. Tidy does a superb job of presenting this story as a thriller, understable to any reader regardless of their high-tech sophistication.
As a victim myself of the notorious North Korean cyberattack against Sony, I read with fascination how these hackers armed with Xboxes and PlayStation consoles were able to bring corporations and even governments to their knees. Tidy underlines our vulnerability to these cynical, seemingly random attacks by those looking to make their devilish mark, and the long-term costs to society still searching for adequate ways to defend itself. Joe Tidy''s mesmerizing book Ctrl+Alt+Chaos is a must read for all who want to understand the worldwide dangers of cybercrime."--Thomas Maier, author of The Invisible Spy: Churchill''s Rockefeller Center Spy Ring and America''s First Secret Agent of World War II "Informative and terrifying."--Booklist "[A] game of cat-and-mouse that Tidy fluently recounts."--Kirkus.