Kingpin

How One Hacker Took Over the Billion-Dollar Cybercrime Underground

By: Kevin Poulsen

Narrated by: Eric Michael Summerer

The word spread through the hacking underground like some unstoppable new virus: Someone - some brilliant, audacious crook - had just staged a hostile takeover of an online criminal network that siphoned billions of dollars from the U.S. economy. The FBI rushed to launch an ambitious undercover operation aimed at tracking down this new kingpin. Other agencies around the world deployed dozens of moles and double agents.

Together, the cybercops lured numerous unsuspecting hackers into their clutches. Yet at every turn, their main quarry displayed an uncanny ability to sniff out their snitches and see through their plots. The culprit they sought was the most unlikely of criminals: a brilliant programmer with a hippie ethic and a supervillain's double identity. Together with a smooth-talking con artist, he ran a massive real-world crime ring.

©2011 Kevin Poulsen (P)2015 Tantor

Critic reviews

"A compelling ride." ( Kirkus)

Troubled Hacker Rules Stolen Credit Card World

What did you love best about Kingpin?

I think Poulsen was the second best person to write this book, Max Vision himself is the only one who could have done a better job because the book is about him. That's really what separates this book from Ghost in the Wire, Mitnick wrote his own book and this is a second hand account of everything that happened. Still, I loved it and Poulsen did a great job with it.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Kingpin?

Max changes his name to Max Ray Vision. Clearly it says something about you when you change your name. We get a sense that Max is a tortured soul wanting to do good and then reverting to crime and his need to be in control and hack.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

I think this book would make an excellent film, with a film it's all about what you focus on and the wild parties would make good cinematography.

Any additional comments?

Some of the book has an investigative journalist feel to it and other parts feel more like taking a ride into the underbelly of the internet. Overall I loved it.

Interesting then boring then interesting ...

Parts of it were interesting but I found myself zoning out and not paying attention because parts dragged a little. Not sure if it would have helped to not do audio book for this one (perhaps it’s just a little much for audiobook..)....?..

Decent story

A good story overall but it wasn't as captivating. The narrator could've done a better job at making the story more interesting.

Excellent audio book.

Excellent narration. And very interesting story. Too bad such a brain was lost in criminal acts.

Great book! Kept me interested.

Great Book! Kept me looking forward to upcoming chapters. A bit techie, but overavall I understood it.

Not geeky enough but still good story

I would have love more technical details about the main character’s set up/riggs, favorite OS, tools, etc.
Still great book!

enthralling

only thing lacking is finer details into some of the hacks that were preformed. others got the whole treatment and we're finely detailed. overall a well written tale into a hackers mind.

Manna For Tech Geeks, Not Sure About Anyone Else

If you're a computer geek like me, Kingpin is a slam dunk. Although it focuses on super hacker Max Butler, it's actually the story of a quite a number of people who have been stealing our credit cards over the past couple of decades, how they do it, why they do it (it's not always just for the money). It's also the story of how law enforcement takes them down, which has more to do with their own foibles than with expert sleuthing.

With all the personal and technical details, there is no way for techies not to like this book. I was actually in fraud myself in the 90s -- as a techie working to detect fraud, not as a perp. I was in telecom fraud, not CC fraud, and I was pre-internet, but I was nevertheless able to relate to much of the action and was enthralled by a story that reminded me so much of what I worked on back in the day.

The big question is whether it works for readers who do not share that kind of background. I believe the answer is yes. There are all sorts of non-fiction titles that we all read and enjoy even if we're not experts in those fields. Indeed we learn a lot more from it if we go in as non-experts. One can get lost in some of Kingpin's more arcane technical details (even as a one-time computer professional, some of it went over my head), yet I feel this book would work for anyone.

What we all do have in common, even those who aren't techies, is having our credit cards hacked. This story explains many of the ways that has happened over the years, and that knowledge can help us avoid future scams. While I won't go so far as to say this is well-written, it has the supreme virtue of having been written by a former black hat hacker who served time for some of his crimes. Now a journalist, Kevin Poulsen has written a peppy little real life story, lean, well paced, informative. Worth a shot.

fascinating for IT folks and hacking admirers

lots of real life hacking incidents referenced, compelling tale, good reader. it makes me want to research if the kingpin is based on a real person

Fascinating and worth the purchase

An extremely well written and worthwhile read. I like history pieces, and this one didn't disappoint.