The bottomline for Inside Internet Security: What Hackers Don't Want You to Know is that it is a good introductory book to the concepts of information security, but the information is dated now

The bottomline for Safe and Secure is that it was an excellent book in its time. The fundamentals are still solid and it is well-written, but there are more current books on the subject.

This is probably the easiest book review I have ever written. If you rely on computers for any aspect of your life, you owe it to yourself to read and re-read this book. The book's subtitle is "Everyone's Guide to E-Mail, Internet, and Wireless Security" and it delivers in each of these respects and more. The author lays a good groundwork for understanding computer security from the general user's perspective and in the common person's language. If you are a network administrator who needs to help hapless users grasp computer security, this book will prove to be a treasure trove of good advice for them.

Spam, viruses, pop-up ads and spyware are all pests that at their best are a significant annoyance and at their worst can destroy your data and render your computer effectively useless. No matter how you look at it you don't want these things in your computer and you need to do what you can to make sure your computer stays clean and functional.

The home user market is a significant area of computer insecurity and the children and teens are the ones who are joining the Internet community each day with no concept of computer or network security. Teens also tend to engage in riskier computer use such as file sharing, chat rooms and online gaming. Dan Appleman provides the information teens, or anyone else for that matter, should know before venturing out onto the Internet or World Wide Web.

Thomas Greene is well-known within the computer and security world for his work as Associate Editor of The Register- a British tech newspaper. This book is a great contribution to the home and small office market. The market is challenged with an increased need for security coupled with a decreased understanding- not a good combination. The challenge is to present security in terms the audience can understand and Greene does an excellent job of meeting that challenge.

There are many books on information security- from books that cover a broad spectrum to books on specific topics such as intrusion detection or firewalls. Many, if not most, of these books are written for those who are already in network administration or information security. For those who need the information in plain English- these top picks should help.

"Cyber Spying-Tracking Your Family's (Sometimes) Secret Online Lives" starts out with a discussion on the ethics of spying on your family members, a good thing since I'm guessing most people who pick up this book will struggle with that particular issue. Once you're okay with spying, the authors take you through everything from digging through Web history to erasing your tracks. This is a good resource for parents who might be concerned about what their children are doing online.

Handheld personal digital assistants (PDA's) like the Palm Pilot or the Toshiba Pocket PC are almost ubiquitous these days. Technically savvy users download their contacts and calendars and sync their data on the fly. Some have wireless network capability and may even be able to access and download email. All of this is very convenient, but also creates a security hole for many corporate networks which administrators must address.

This book is not necessarily computer related, but there is a fine line between Internet / Network Security and privacy issues. Christian Parenti takes a potentially dry subject and makes it compelling. He provides a detailed history of surveillance in America- from the slave era through post 9/11. What you learn about how gadgets and conveniences you use everyday can also be used to monitor you may frighten you. A great read.