Sandworm

A New Era of Cyberwar and the Hunt for the Kremlin's Most Dangerous Hackers

By: Andy Greenberg

Narrated by: Mark Bramhall

"With the nuance of a reporter and the pace of a thriller writer, Andy Greenberg gives us a glimpse of the cyberwars of the future while at the same time placing his story in the long arc of Russian and Ukrainian history." —Anne Applebaum, bestselling author of Twilight of Democracy

The true story of the most devastating act of cyberwarfare in history and the desperate hunt to identify and track the elite Russian agents behind it: "[A] chilling account of a Kremlin-led cyberattack, a new front in global conflict" (Financial Times).

In 2014, the world witnessed the start of a mysterious series of cyberattacks. Targeting American utility companies, NATO, and electric grids in Eastern Europe, the strikes grew ever more brazen. They culminated in the summer of 2017, when the malware known as NotPetya was unleashed, penetrating, disrupting, and paralyzing some of the world's largest businesses—from drug manufacturers to software developers to shipping companies. At the attack's epicenter in Ukraine, ATMs froze. The railway and postal systems shut down. Hospitals went dark. NotPetya spread around the world, inflicting an unprecedented ten billion dollars in damage—the largest, most destructive cyberattack the world had ever seen.

The hackers behind these attacks are quickly gaining a reputation as the most dangerous team of cyberwarriors in history: a group known as Sandworm. Working in the service of Russia's military intelligence agency, they represent a persistent, highly skilled force, one whose talents are matched by their willingness to launch broad, unrestrained attacks on the most critical infrastructure of their adversaries. They target government and private sector, military and civilians alike.

A chilling, globe-spanning detective story, Sandworm considers the danger this force poses to our national security and stability. As the Kremlin's role in foreign government manipulation comes into greater focus, Sandworm exposes the realities not just of Russia's global digital offensive, but of an era where warfare ceases to be waged on the battlefield. It reveals how the lines between digital and physical conflict, between wartime and peacetime, have begun to blur—with world-shaking implications.

Important and Compelling...But...

Incredibly important work. Great detail. Unfortunately, I once again find the authors credibility damaged by the petty and utterly ridiculous partisan attacks. Obama watches the first Ukrainian attack and failed in every way to counter this threat, unleashed his own uncontrollable cyber warfare, likely ignored NK hacking, did nothing to the Russians as they hacked the DNC (until 12/2015) - just to name a few of the failings of those EIGHT years. But Trump? Well, the author makes fun of Trump’s technological skills (no proof), brings up unproven, debunked Russian gate and spends way too much time holding Trump to a standard that apparently only applies to conservatives/Trump. The author sounds like another frustrated anti-Trump hater who gives Obama a pass for outrageous failings while trashing Trump. I think this is an important book. I am no partisan Trump fan. But the treatment of Trump compared to Obama is ridiculous. Eight years - Obama did nothing. Gross negligence. Time for liberal authors to grow up.

Very educational

The book is a must-read to understand the extend of possibilities of a digital warfare. It would make anyone more security conscious .

amazing job

I enjoyed every minute of listening. I want to pick up a hard copy now.

Fascinating

If you have any interest in computers, cybersecurity, or software engineering as a whole, this is enthralling

Enlightening and terrifying

Read Greenberg’s Wired article about Hutchins/Wanna Cry which ultimately led me to his book. Cannot believe how advanced cyber warfare is already… meaning we are probably barely scratching the surface. Very comprehensive book. Excellent journalism. Thrilling story writing. Look forward to future work on this topic by Greenberg.