CTRL+ALT+PWN: The Hacker’s Playbook

by Frank Riccardi

As the prevalence of AI continues to grow, more and more people are worried about their online safety. New scams seem to be popping up every day, packaged in creative and terrifying ways. Rather than resign yourself to an inevitable fate or remove yourself from the online world entirely, learn the tricks of the trade to avoid being just another pwned noob.

From celebrity actors to professional athletes and even social media CEOs, anyone can be a hacker's target. What matters most is catching someone unprotected and unawares and pwning them—hacker slang for completely and humiliatingly beating someone. Leaving them with the kind of digital defeat that has them scrambling to recover stolen data, reputation, or worse. But that doesn’t have to be you.

Ctrl+Alt+Pwn: The Hacker’s Playbook (and How to Beat It) exposes the secret weapons, sneaky tactics, and psychological tricks used by hackers today—and shows you how to stop them. Whether it’s setting traps with a WiFi Pineapple or using poisoned QR codes to hijack your phone, modern hacking isn’t just about code—it’s about manipulating people. And it’s getting more dangerous with the rise of AI, deepfakes, and advanced social engineering.

From headline-making ransomware attacks to celebrity data leaks and scams that start with a single swipe on a dating app, Ctrl+Alt+Pwn walks you through real-world cases and gives you the tools to stay one step ahead. Because no one is off-limits. But with the right knowledge, you don’t have to be the next victim.

338 pages, Paperback

Expected publication August 18, 2026

About the author

Frank Riccardi is a cybersecurity and privacy expert who’s passionate about empowering people and companies with the cyber-savvy needed to repel cyberattacks. With twenty-five years of experience in healthcare compliance and privacy, he has led the response to high-risk data breaches and ransomware cyberattacks. Grappling with one cyberattack after another has led Frank to embark on a new journey and mission: Helping everyday people—whom he affectionately refers to as “non-geeks”—protect themselves from financially devastating and soul-crushing cyberattacks that can ruin their lives.

When Frank is not preaching the gospel of cyber hygiene, he indulges in his love for music as an audiophile and a vinyl record hoarder—or, as he prefers to call himself, a hobbyist. Notably, Frank guarantees that he is irrefutably human and not an avatar, bot, or AI.

Reviews

[LM · Rating 4 out of 5]

CTRL+ALT+PWN: The Hacker's Playbook by Frank Riccardi highlights how ordinary people can drift into morally gray territory through opportunity, pressure, and a distorted sense of reality. One thing becomes very clear: there are all kinds of hackers. Some are ethical. Some are definitely not. Regardless of which hat they wear, they all have access to information, and because cybercrime laws often struggle to keep pace with technology, hacking isn't going away anytime soon. The internet has no borders, and the person targeting you could be halfway around the world.

Riccardi walks readers through the hacker's playbook while offering practical advice on how to avoid the common mistakes that often lead to becoming a victim. He explains how poor password habits, and let's be honest, laziness is usually the culprit, can leave the door wide open to virtually every account you own. Password managers exist for a reason, so relying on a bad memory is no longer a valid excuse.

There are far too many useful takeaways in this book to list, but if you've ever fallen for a "Nigerian prince" email or one of those celebrity romance scams involving Brad Pitt, you should probably commit this book to memory. With the rise of AI, cybercriminals have become more sophisticated, and the scams that used to be easy to spot are no longer so obvious. Staying safe requires constant vigilance. The reality is that you have to be alert all the time, while attackers only need to succeed once.

The good news is that even with AI-powered scams becoming more advanced, there are still warning signs and practical strategies that can help you protect yourself. This book provides those tools in a way that is accessible to everyone. The language is not overly technical, making it easy for readers of any background to understand. Riccardi also injects enough humor into the subject matter to keep it from feeling like a nonstop parade of doom and gloom.

I hold a CompTIA Security+ certification, and even I learned a few new things. This is a valuable read for anyone who wants to avoid becoming the next victim of a cybercriminal.

Thank you to Frank Riccardi, Turner Publishing Company, and NetGalley for the ARC.