Java Security: Hostile Applets, Holes & Antidotes - Softcover

McGraw, Gary; Fellen, Edward

Softcover

ISBN 10: 047117842X ISBN 13: 9780471178422

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons Inc, 1996

Synopsis

"This book is mandatory reading for every user and developer of webware." —Peter G. Neumann Moderator of the Risks Forum

Do you know how to sort out fact from fiction when it comes to Java security? Did you know that whenever you surf the Web with Netscape or Internet Explorer you are using Java? That means that someone else's code is running untested on your computer. Don't wait for a hostile applet to show you how vulnerable your site is. International security experts Gary McGraw and Edward Felten —leader of the famed Princeton team —tell you how Java security works, and how it doesn't.

McGraw and Felten give you all the information you need to create a reasonable Java use strategy. Java Security gives you:

• Guidelines for using Java more safely today
• What to expect in the Java security future
• A clear treatment of the risks of using Java
• Vital information explaining the three prongs of the Java security model: the Byte Code Verifier, the Applet Class Loader, and the Security Manager
• Clear explanations of holes in the Java security model

Whether you're a webmaster, an information technology manager charged with creating an intelligent security policy for your organization, or a concerned Web user, this book is must reading.

visit this book's companion web site at: http://www.rstcorp.com/java-security.html

visit our web site at: Ihttp://www.wiley.com/compbooks/

About this title

Review

Right at the beginning the authors admit that " ... there is no black-and-white answer to the question, should I use Java?," and that the purpose of this book is to help you make your own decision. As an aid to systems administrators who are judging whether to enable Java on their company's computers, this book is worth the short time it takes to read it.

Java Security begins with a description of the aims and features of the Java language and its security model, a description that will hold no surprises for the moderately experienced Java programmer. Authors Gary McGraw and Edward W. Felten, both professional hunters of Java security flaws, then spend a little too long detailing their past glories: the flaws in Java that they and others have found, but have long since fixed. They also list ongoing nuisance problems, suggestions and predictions for Java's future, and a short list of "antidotes" users can take to avoid risks.

From the Publisher

When Java added exciting possibilities to Web sites, it also opened some dangerous portals that may enable hackers and other "computer criminals" to compromise what you thought was a secure system. Most organization's Web Browsers are Java enabled so your corporation may already be at risk. Ed Felten was one of the first who blew the whistle on security weaknesses of Java. Here he joins Gary McGraw in outlining secure programming practices for today's hottest language. They reveal the weaknesses and pitfalls of current safe Java policy and show how to incorporate both organizational and technical fixes into an effective safety managment program.

Edition details

• Publisher: John Wiley & Sons Inc
• Publication date: 1996
• ISBN 10: 047117842X
• ISBN 13: 9780471178422
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 192