Who Should Read This Book?

This book was written with a broad audience in mind. Consider students who are hearing all about the importance of network security and want to focus on this area. This book helps them by providing an understanding of all the major components of securing a network. Perhaps you are a networking professional with in-depth expertise in routing and switching, and now you have been asked to deploy wireless (securely). This book provides a solid foundation upon which to explore the subject matter in more depth, while understanding the different components necessary for accomplishing your goals. You might even be a CIO who has been tasked with determining whether you should invest in an intrusion detection system (IDS). Perhaps you need to understand why this is needed, how it works, and when/where to use it.

Regardless of your expertise or role in the IT industry, this book has a place for you; it takes concepts and simplifies them to give you a solid foundation of understanding. What you do with that knowledge is up to you. This book might give you what you need, or it might be the first step in your journey.