As a member of the cyber security community, I am at odds with how to rate or discuss this book. By far I can say that it is well written and as a semi bias biographical account of the great history of 'hacktivism' it provides a lot of information. The biggest negative to the book is in fact just the sheer amount of history this 'short' book endows, the cast of characters is incredibly large and the amount of actions or inactions it accounts to individuals very quickly becomes hard to process, as well as the mixing of real names and 'l33t' names can be quite confusing. At times I truly would get confused at the cast that was being discussed and some of their contributions were so large that I could have truly seen a whole book on some individuals alone.

I enjoyed a large part of the book, it was inspiring and fun to see how the brains behind some of the events or applications we use started, just as being kids finding their way to old school bulletin boards or forums. Having quotes of things they would write to each other on mailing lists, and understanding the belief system that is a cornerstone to the ethics that largely remain in this community. But other parts of the book was quite a dry telling, almost as if the author themselves are attempting to stop you from getting excited or really interested in certain characters or events. Making the book seem far longer and making full chapters just truly drag as if you are reading a history book in high school again for your latest report.

All in all, I would say this book is a very nice read and if you want to know the (generally) true, while maybe at times dull history of some of the most creative and ethically minded technology specialists then this book is what you are looking for. Keep in mind you may need a computer present to note names, 'l33t' names or look up events to get a more thorough background of some of the more interesting sections.

3.5/5