Countdown to Zero Day: Stuxnet and the Launch of the World’s First Digital Weapon

“Countdown to Zero Day” by Kim Zetter is an incredible, in-depth technical account of the events revolving Stuxnet and its sister malware strains, Duqu and Flame. Zetter spares no details throughout the book, giving readers an in-your-face view about the mechanical underworkings of nuclear centrifuges, malware domain sinkholes, and zero-day exploit chains. In short, “Countdown to Zero Day” does not hesitate to get in the weeds.

Getting into the weeds can be a bit exhausting. I will admit that this book lost my attention for periods of time. Compounding that is the fact the Zetter recollects the same events through various different perspectives, an excellent tool for analyzing the vast opinions surrounding Stuxnet, but can be a bit of a ‘slog’ for readers looking for something a bit lighter to read.

The book’s high points for me were the chapters covering the Bush and Obama administrations’ involvement in the project. It was fascinating to see leaders go beyond politics and how much faith was put into a project that was the first of its kind.

I didn’t dislike “Countdown to Zero Day” - but I do think it was the wrong time for me to read this book. Reading has been an activity to help me wind down as of recent. “Countdown to Zero Day” demands your full attention. I also believe I would have enjoyed the book more if I had read it first in my recent sprint of cyber books. Nearly all of my recent reads covered Stuxnet in some way and as a result the revelations of Zetter’s work were less shocking than they could have been.

All that said - I’ve since subscribed to Kim Zetter’s newsletters and am enthralled by her dedication to her craft. “Countdown to Zero Day” is a monumental accomplishment, but not one I would recommend to enjoy as bedside reading.