1. BackTrack

BackTrack is simply the best security auditing LiveCD available. If you want to test a network, look no further. It comes bundled with the software necessary to audit wireless networks, web servers, local networks, email servers, and more. It also includes software for doing forensics on any computer, or recovering a Windows password. Get this one before you try any other. Oh yeah, it’s the only Security LiveCD not in beta.
Get BackTrack Now.

2. Operator

Operator is based on Debian. At its latest relase it includes KDE V3.3, wine, and Koffice. The LiveCD includes all the most popular security software for linux, with the notable exception of Nessus, the automated network scanner. Besides that, this is a rock solid security auditing suite, and a great one for the newbie.
Get Operator Now.

3. PHLAK

PHLAK is a great lightweight security LiveCD. If you’re looking for the fastest boot time, look no further than PHLAK. This LiveCD has one of the most complete lists of software, but is no longer in active development. So you may want to try the USB version now available at their site. It’s a much better way to update the software.
Get PHLAK Now.

4. nUbuntu

nUbuntu is another great lightweight LiveCD. It’s still in active development, and comes with a bunch of handy admin tools. There are a few security tols you won’t find in most other Pen-Test LiveCDs, like RainbowCrack and Hash Collision. This could potentially become the best security LiveCD out there in the coming months.
Get nUbuntu Now.

5. Knoppix-STD
Knoppix-STD is a different sort of security LiveCD. This distro focuses more on the cryptography and defense side of things rather than the penetration testing side. You’ll find honeypots and multiple firewalls on this CD. Also included are a bunch of Intrusion Detection Systems (or IDS) for making sure your computer stays uncompromised.
Get Knoppix-STD Now.

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Have you heard of digg? It’s the social news site that lets people “vote” for what should be on the front page. Or, in their words:

Digg is a technology news website that combines social bookmarking, blogging, RSS, and non-hierarchical editorial control. With digg, users submit stories for review, but rather than allow an editor to decide which stories go on the homepage, the users do.

Digg has quickly grown because of the revolutionary idea of letting users decide what goes on the homepage. But do they really let users select which stories make the front page, or do they censor some articles without reason?

As I’ve seen in the past week, they censor articles without reason.

It started with a story written by a friend on Defeating Censorship. I posted the story to digg, thinking it would be relevant, as there had been a whole lot of news that week on Google’s censorship in China, and the censorship of sites questioning Scientology in the US. By the next day my account was deleted.

I didn’t know it then, but censorship is a touchy topic with the people over at digg. They had been publicly shown to censor articles a few months earlier by the guys over at slashdot.

Now, why would they bury my article and delete my account? The origional article was focused on helping the people of China access information about Democracy. But by showing how to circumvent censorship, we also showed how badly digg was censoring their articles.

The net was meant to be free. As in free speech. People in charge of major amounts of internet traffic should not be able to censor entire portions of the net. Digg is abusing their newfound internet popularity for their own misdeeds. They need to know the users of the internet will not tolerate censorship. If you already have a digg account, start asking why they censor news. Post links to this page, and we’ll build a collection of censored digg articles. I know I’m not the only one.

You can see my buried article on digg here.

Please pass this on to anyone you know who uses digg or believes in freedom of speech on the net!

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