Originally released in 1996, Netcat is a netowrking program designed to read and write data across both Transmission Control Protocol TCP and User Datagram Protocol (UDP) connections using the TCP/Internet Protocol (IP) protocol suite. Netcat is often referred to as a "Swiss Army knife" utility, and for good reason. Just like the multi-function usefullness of the venerable Swiss Army pocket knife, Netcat's functionality is helpful as both a standalone program and a backe-end tool in a wide range of applications. Some of the many uses of Netcat include port scanning, transferring files, grabbing banners, port listening and redirection, and more nefariously, a backdoor. This is the only book dedicated to comprehensive coverage of the tool's many features, and by the end of this book, you'll discover how Netcat can be one of the most valuable tools in your arsenal.
