The Lazarus Heist by Geoff White

I just finished The Lazarus Heist by Geoff White

I loved the book. It was a great supplement to the podcast by the same author and of the same title. The audiobook is read by the author which really adds that additional element in an audiobook.

The content is additive to the podcast but not a replacement. The podcast does include some direct interviews and other content that aren’t present in the book but the book extends the story beyond the podcast and into very recent history. A better title would be The Lazarus Heists because it really includes many of the known heists that the Lazarus group has run. The content is a great balance of technical concepts explained well so it does not require anyone with a technical background to enjoy.

My only criticism is that in the conclusion of the book and the authors statements around ‘cyber war’. I think cyber war is a silly concept and is absurdly complex. The author states that the Lazarus group would be able to easily turn their heist tactics around into offensive cyber activity with the aims for material ends, but I fundamentally disagree. The complexity of hacking and cyber activities and the specialization that these hacking groups have makes pivoting no trivial task. Nonetheless, I really enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend.