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  • This Is How They Tell Me the World Ends

  • The Cyberweapons Arms Race
  • Written by: Nicole Perlroth
  • Narrated by: Allyson Ryan
  • Length: 18 hrs and 32 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (94 ratings)

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This Is How They Tell Me the World Ends

Written by: Nicole Perlroth
Narrated by: Allyson Ryan
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Publisher's Summary

Bloomsbury presents This Is How They Tell Me the World Ends by Nicole Perlroth, read by Allyson Ryan.

THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * Winner of the Financial Times & McKinsey Business Book of the Year Award * Bronze Medal, Arthur Ross Book Award (Council on Foreign Relations)

“Part John le Carré and more parts Michael Crichton . . . spellbinding.” The New Yorker

"Written in the hot, propulsive prose of a spy thriller" (The New York Times), the untold story of the cyberweapons market—the most secretive, government-backed market on earth—and a terrifying first look at a new kind of global warfare.

Zero day: a software bug that allows a hacker to break into your devices and move around undetected. One of the most coveted tools in a spy's arsenal, a zero day has the power to silently spy on your iPhone, dismantle the safety controls at a chemical plant, alter an election, and shut down the electric grid (just ask Ukraine).

For decades, under cover of classification levels and non-disclosure agreements, the United States government became the world’s dominant hoarder of zero days. U.S. government agents paid top dollar—first thousands, and later millions of dollars— to hackers willing to sell their lock-picking code and their silence.

Then the United States lost control of its hoard and the market.

Now those zero days are in the hands of hostile nations and mercenaries who do not care if your vote goes missing, your clean water is contaminated, or our nuclear plants melt down.

Filled with spies, hackers, arms dealers, and a few unsung heroes, written like a thriller and a reference, This Is How They Tell Me the World Ends is an astonishing feat of journalism. Based on years of reporting and hundreds of interviews, Nicole Perlroth lifts the curtain on a market in shadow, revealing the urgent threat faced by us all if we cannot bring the global cyber arms race to heel.

©2021 Nicole Perlroth (P)2021 Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
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What listeners say about This Is How They Tell Me the World Ends

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Illuminating at all levels

Whether you have zero knowledge of INFOSEC/Cybersecurity or you have a moderate understanding, this book is written for both audiences to take something away. Furthermore, for those that have zero interest in the topic, it is more of a priority to read so that you know how to operate in the Information Age.

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Excellent book, not-so-excellent reading

The book is excellent, but the reading is at times a bit annoying
I will recommend the book, not the audiobook

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Wow

This is truly scary stuff yet very informative. Can’t believe we are letting folks do this stuff without any repercussions

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Wonderful insight into cyber security

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and found it to be both well written and well narrated. The book opens a door to a shadowy world and has made me even more security conscious and I didn’t think that was possible. I would not hesitate to recommend this audiobook to those with an interest in cyber security.

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Captivating story; Abysmal pronunciation of Ukrainian names

The story and research are great. The overall tone and read is quite nice. Just one contant issue - almost every Ukrainian name is horribly mispronounced - from the name of the capital - Kyiv - to most other towns, government entities, people, and cities. The lack of the most basic quality control in this aspect is distracting - the equivalent of repeatedly pronouncing Des Moines as “dezmoynez” or Arkansas as “arkanzaz”.
“…to the Russian embassy in Kyiv” - every time it’s a struggle to understand what city they were actually saying. Why they couldn’t get a native speaker of the language to check the prononciations is mystifying.

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Real life thrill

It's like mission impossible but for real. The stories that I read parts of it on the news, now I get to have the background of the story. I don't think this book for folks in IT or cyber security only, it's for everyone who deals with computers or phones which is everyone!

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Essential

If you only read one book ever, this is the book to read. It takes everything you ever needed to know about computers (and computer security) and puts it into plain language.

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Fascinating read!

What a great book. Extremely enlightening and provides an insight to a world many of us rarely think about. It was very interesting but also somewhat terrifying. Highly recommended.

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Forget science fiction, the reality is worse

While computers have been used as a plot device in science fiction for possible disaster scenarios, the reality is more terrifying. This book catalogs how the same internet which powers our current life has become corrupted, the major but sometimes unstressed news stories of each ratcheted step, and shows just how close we really are to major multinational disasters by agents who don't have to leave their own countries to implement. For those wondering exactly where we are and how we got here, this book is your map.

But 'This is How They Tell Me the World Ends' ends with clear steps on minimizing the worst case scenarios. While no solution can ever be 100% effective, especially in areas of technology which are ever evolving, there are some steps to minimize the damage greatly. These steps can be used by each of us to limit our own harm, and can also be educational on what we should expect from our politicians and businesses. Because these issues are being ignored at our own peril, and require the focused efforts of many to resolve. Whatever big business or government division you think has never been impacted by computer based sabotage, is likely not free from it, and this book outlines many such cases.

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The author's ability to discuss somewhat complicated topics in a very well though out story lo e that engages the reader.

This is a great book for those looking to understand information security, the nuances and challenges without being extremely technical. It's a great yet scary and sometimes tragic story that engages the reader and walks them through from the inception of Information Security till today. For those who think getting their identity stolen or their company hacked is the worst that can happen, this will be a serious awakening. Enjoy!

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