Bio

I have been a professional journalist for three decades, specializing in technology stories since 1999, and joined The Washington Post in early 2022. My most recent book, Cult of the Dead Cow: How the Original Hacking Supergroup Might Just Save the World, was published in June 2019 and named one of the best 10 nonfiction works of the year by Hudson Booksellers. Inducted into the Cybersecurity Canon Hall of Fame, the Wall Street Journal named it one of the all-time ''Five Cybersecurity Books That Everyone Should—and Can—Read.'' The New York Times Book Review said: “The tale of this small but influential group is a hugely important piece of the puzzle for anyone who wants to understand the forces shaping the internet age.'' An adaptation of the book for Reuters revealed that Beto O'Rourke had been a member of the enormously influential group and drew the most engagement on Reuters.com in its history. Previously, I wrote Fatal System Error: the Hunt for the New Crime Lords who are Bringing Down the Internet. That book was the first serious journalism accusing the Russian intelligence agencies of working with organized cyber criminals. It also exposed Gambino crime family investments in Internet gambling operations, and was cited in that context by the Miami Herald and McClatchy Newspapers in their Pulitzer Prize-winning coverage of the Panama Papers money-laundering leaks. The podcast episodes I wrote for Wondery as an adaption of my 2003 book on Napster have been downloaded more than 1.8 million times. I have appeared in documentaries including ''The Panama Papers'' and have advised on other productions, including HBO's ''Silicon Valley.'' I also give speeches, toot at @JosephMenn@infosec.exchange, tweet as @JosephMenn, and respond to email reached at joemenn@gmail.com. Specialties: Cybersecurity, hacking, infosec, cybercrime, cyberwar, hacktivism, Russia, China, public speaking, narrative nonfiction, investigative journalism, technology journalism, financial journalism.