44 Cybersecurity Hacking Books: From Practical Skills to Infamous True Stories
After getting into cybersecurity a few years ago, my desire to learn more grew exponentially. I ended up buying a ton of books! I’ve organized them into two categories: practical and non-fiction.
The practical books focus on teaching techniques and hands-on skills, while the non-fiction books explore infamous true crime stories that are real page-turners.
Whenever people ask which ones are my favorite, I always reply, ‘All of them.’
The first cybersecurity / hacking-related book I read was “This Is How They Tell Me the World Ends: The Cyberweapons Arms Race.” I have been hooked ever since, and I guess you could say Nicole Perlroth is to blame for sparking my addiction — haha!
Practical Cybersecurity Books
Book title | ISBN-13 | Year of release | Pages
Black Hat Python | 9781718501126 | 2021 | 216
Bug Bounty Bootcamp | 9781718501546 | 2021 | 416
Cracking Codes with Python | 9781593278229 | 2018 | 416
Extreme Privacy | 9798335024334 | 2024 | 590
Getting Started Becoming a Master Hacker | 9781711729299 | 2019 | 358
Hacking APIs | 9781718502444 | 2022 | 368
Hacking: The Art of Exploitation | 9781593271442 | 2008 | 488
Hash Crack | 9781793458612 | 2019 | 137
How Cybersecurity Really Works | 9781718501287 | 2021 | 216
How Linux Works, 3rd Edition | 9781718500402 | 2021 | 464
Hunting Cyber Criminals | 9781119540922 | 2020 | 544
Kali Linux Penetration Testing Bible | 9781119719083 | 2021 | 512
Learn Wireshark | 9781789134506 | 2019 | 432
Linux Basics for Hackers | 9781593278557 | 2018 | 248
Mastering Regular Expressions | 9780596528126 | 2006 | 542
Nmap 6 Cookbook | 9781507781388 | 2015 | 226
OSINT Techniques | 9798366360401 | 2023 | 550
Penetration Testing | 9781593275648 | 2014 | 528
Practical Cryptography | 9780471223573 | 2003 | 432
Practical IoT Hacking | 9781718500907 | 2021 | 464
Practical Linux Forensics | 9781718501966 | 2021 | 400
Serious Cryptography | 9781593278267 | 2017 | 312
The 8 Layers of the OSI Cake | 9798652368944 | 2020 | 264
The Ghidra Book | 9781718501027 | 2020 | 608
The Hacker Playbook 2 | 9781512214567 | 2015 | 358
Web Security for Developers | 9781593279943 | 2020 | 216
Non-Fiction Cybersecurity Books
Book title | ISBN-13 | Year of release | Pages
American Kingpin | 9780143129028 | 2018 | 368
Breaking And Entering | 978–0544903210 | 2019 | 304
Cult of the Dead Cow | 978–1541762367 | 2020 | 288
Dark Wire | 978–1541702691 | 2024 | 352
Ghost in the Wires | 978–0316037723 | 2012 | 448
Hacking the Hacker | 978–1119396215 | 2017 | 320
How I Rob Banks | 978–1119911470 | 2023 | 256
If It’s Smart, It’s Vulnerable | 978–1119895183 | 2022 | 288
Kingpin | 978–0307588685 | 2011 | 288
Permanent Record | 978–1250772909 | 2020 | 352
Sandworm | 978–0385544405 | 2019 | 368
The Art of Intrusion | 978–0471782667 | 2005 | 288
The Art of Invisibility | 978–0316380522 | 2019 | 320
The Cuckoo’s Egg | 978–0385249461 | 1989 | 326
The Hacker and the State | 978–0674987555 | 2020 | 432
The Lazarus Heist | 978–0241554258 | 2022 | 304
This Is How They Tell Me the World Ends | 978–1635576054 | 2021 | 528
Tracers in the Dark | 978–0593315613 | 2024 | 384
My book hack for cheaper prices
I am not affiliated with any of these books or publishers; I purchased them all with my own money. A great tip for buying these books at a lower price on Amazon is to check the used book options.
Personally, I prefer hardcover editions, and here’s an example: I was able to buy Sandworm for less than its new price of $19.91.
I first look at the initial price of buying it new, $19.91. Then I look at the advertised save with used — Good for $12.98. Next I look at the price from “Other sellers on Amazon.”
Now many of these prices are from libraries so you need to pay attention to the details. I have had good luck on buying these from Other sellers on Amazon. Pay close attention to the condition and the notes.
Notice how the top one says Used — Acceptable with the note: This is a USED book, it is subject to external and interior wear including, underlining, highlighting…I might hold off on that copy because it could contain highlights. When I scroll down further I see other conditions:
I usually opt for copies listed as ‘Used — Good’ or ‘Used — Very Good,’ depending on how much I want the book. My last trick is to always check if I’m getting the best deal.
For example, if a ‘Used — Good’ copy is $4.99, with $5.73 shipping, the total comes to $10.72. But a ‘Used — Very Good’ copy for $7.24 with $3.99 shipping totals $11.23. For less than a dollar more, it makes sense to go for the better condition. This approach would save me $8.68 compared to buying the book new.
That said, sometimes I do buy books new if the price difference with used copies (including shipping) is too close to the new price.
Happy reading!
