Welcome, dear reader! I sincerely hope you’ve found your way here to this introduction happy, healthy, and brimming with confidence—or, at the very least, curiosity. I can see you there, standing in your bookstore flipping through the book, or sitting in your living room, clicking through virtual pages at some online retailer. And you’re wondering whether you’ll buy it or not—whether this is the book you need for your study guide. You probably have perused the outline, checked the chapter titles—heck, you may have even read that great author bio they forced me to write. And now you’ve found your way to this—the introduction. Sure, this intro is supposed to be designed to explain the ins and outs of the book—to lay out its beauty and crafty witticism in such a way that you just can’t resist buying it. But I’m also going to take a moment and explain the realities of the situation, and let you know what you’re really getting yourself into. This isn’t a walk in the park. Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH) didn’t gain the reputation and value it has by being easy to attain. It’s a tough, challenging examination that tests more than just simple memorization. It’s worth has elevated it as one of the top certifications a technician can attain, and is now a part of DoD 8570’s call for certification on DoD networks. In short, this certification actually means something to employers, because they know the effort it takes to attain it. If you’re not willing to put in the effort, maybe you should pick up another line of study. Like cake decorating. Or Sudoku. All that said, I can think of a couple of groups who will be interested in this book. The first group is easy to spot. There you are, with your eyes bright and shining, the glow of innocent expectation on your faces. Either you’re new to the career field or you’re curious and want to expand your knowledge. In either case, step over here to the entrance sign with me. Come on, you’ve seen one before—it’s just like the one out in front of the roller coaster reading, “You must be this tall to enter the ride.” However, this one’s just a little different. Instead of your height, I’m interested in your knowledge, and I have a question or two for you. Do you know the OSI Reference Model? What port does SMTP use? How about Telnet? What transport protocol (TCP or UDP) do they use and why?
