Listen free for 30 days

  • The Perfect Weapon

  • War, Sabotage, and Fear in the Cyber Age
  • Written by: David E. Sanger
  • Narrated by: Robertson Dean
  • Length: 12 hrs and 53 mins
  • 4.9 out of 5 stars (53 ratings)

Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo + applicable taxes after 30 days. Cancel anytime.
The Perfect Weapon cover art

The Perfect Weapon

Written by: David E. Sanger
Narrated by: Robertson Dean
Try for $0.00

$14.95 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $40.04

Buy Now for $40.04

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Tax where applicable.

Publisher's Summary

Soon to be an HBO® documentary from award-winning director John Maggio

“An important - and deeply sobering - new book about cyberwarfare.” (Nicholas Kristof, New York Times)

The Perfect Weapon is the startling inside story of how the rise of cyberweapons transformed geopolitics like nothing since the invention of the atomic bomb. Cheap to acquire, easy to deny, and usable for a variety of malicious purposes, cyber is now the weapon of choice for democracies, dictators, and terrorists. Two presidents - Bush and Obama - drew first blood with Operation Olympic Games, which used malicious code to blow up Iran’s nuclear centrifuges, and yet America proved remarkably unprepared when its own weapons were stolen from its arsenal and, during President Trump’s first year, turned back on the United States and its allies. And if Obama would begin his presidency by helping to launch the new era of cyberwar, he would end it struggling unsuccessfully to defend against Russia’s broad attack on the 2016 US election.

Moving from the White House Situation Room to the dens of Chinese government hackers to the boardrooms of Silicon Valley, New York Times national security correspondent David Sanger reveals a world coming face-to-face with the perils of technological revolution, where everyone is a target.

“Timely and bracing.... With the deep knowledge and bright clarity that have long characterized his work, Sanger recounts the cunning and dangerous development of cyberspace into the global battlefield of the 21st century.” (Washington Post)

©2018, 2019 David E. Sanger (P)2018, 2019 Penguin Random House LLC

What the critics say

"[Sanger's] description of the cyber portion of Russia's interference in the 2016 presidential election is thorough and convincing. It ought to be required reading for anyone who doubts the extent and seriousness of the Russian effort.... The great value of The Perfect Weapon is less in its specific policy prescriptions than in its being the most comprehensive, readable source of information and insight about the policy quandaries that modern information technology and its destructive potential have spawned." (The New York Times)

"In his new book, The Perfect Weapon, Sanger offers a panoramic view of the rapidly evolving world of cyber-conflict. He covers incidents from the covert US cyber-campaign to sabotage Iran’s nuclear program (a story we know about largely because of Sanger’s diligent reporting) to Edward Snowden’s epic heist of National Security Agency data. And yes, there’s also plenty of background on Russia’s active measures during the 2016 campaign. But there’s also a wealth of gripping material on stories that have probably been missed by the broader public.... It all adds up to a persuasive argument for the truth of the book’s title." (Christian Caryl, The Washington Post)

"[The Perfect Weapon] reads like a thriller spy novel, except the stories are true, which makes the book more terrifying.... Sanger shows the political, military, and economic impacts of actual hacks, moves made by governments and industry to counter moves and protect against future attacks, and the counter to the counter to the counter, all told at a breathtaking pace. But this is more than just a real-life drama; it also is a cautionary tale of the policy of information power.... This book at turns was both fascinating in its detail and access and terrifying in its implications." (Proceedings)

What listeners say about The Perfect Weapon

Average Customer Ratings
Overall
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    46
  • 4 Stars
    7
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    35
  • 4 Stars
    8
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    36
  • 4 Stars
    7
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great deep dive into cyberweapons

Truly fascinating book. Sheds new light on current and future cyber threats and the efforts governments take to keep their digital arsenals secret. Great listen! #Audible1

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent Book and Great Narrator

#Audible1

Love this book. Very relevant in this day and age.
Everyone should listen to this book.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful