Chapter 1: The History. Many people do not know that cable modem hacking has been around since the late 90s. The first chapter is a journey of how far cable modem hacking has gone. Along the way, you will be entertained and possibly learn some very interesting facts.

Chapter 2: Cable Modem Showcase. There are many different cable modems on the market, but which is the one you want to own? What most people don’t know is that some cable modems have different features than others. This chapter is a guide to the popular cable modems you may find.

Chapter 3: A Faster Internet. Since the dreaded dialup modem, broadband is constantly being redefined by consumers. In this chapter, you will learn about the technology behind cable modems, what makes them superior to DSL, and the truth about the myths you may have heard.

Chapter 4: The DOCSIS Standard. The art of hacking requires that the hacker know his environment. DOCSIS is a protocol that explains the technical details of how DOCSIS cable modems work. After reading this chapter, you will have a greater understanding of the difficulties that lie ahead.

Chapter 5: What's Inside? Cable modems are in essence miniature computers. This chapter will show you the inside of a cable modem and explain to you what each component is designed to do. Knowing this information is important when installing hardware modifications.

Chapter 6: The Firmware. Firmware is the brain of the cable modem, changing it or modifying its code will directly affect how the cable modem functions and operates. After reading this chapter you will have a better understanding of how important firmware really is.

Chapter 7: Our Limitations. Limitations are a constant battle between what’s possible and what’s not. This chapter will teach you of all the limitations (such as maximum upload or download speeds) that are associated with cable modems and will even teach you how to remove TCP/UDP port restrictions!

Chapter 8: Reverse-Engineering. This chapter is an introduction to the basic techniques of reverse engineering, that is taking apart hardware/software and learning how it was made. You will also see many of the basic tools you may need.

Chapter 9: Cable Modem Security. Before you can hack a cable modem, you need to know the security a cable modem can have. In this chapter you will learn about data encryption, digital certifications, configuration file checksums, and more.

Chapter 10: Buffer Overflows. One of the most useful techniques a hacker can master is the art of buffer overflows. This chapter will explain to you the complexity of this type of exploit, and even show you an actual working example of one that can take complete control of a cable modem.

Chapter 11: SIGMA Enhanced. SIGMA is a powerful tool when hacking cable modems. It is a firmware modification that once installed, will give control of a cable modem to the hacker. This chapter discusses the technology behind SIGMA and to explain to you how it works.

Chapter 12: Hacking Frequencies. Most hardware inside cable modems are generic, however cable systems around the world are not. This chapter will explain the differences between NTSC and PAL cable systems and how to modify a cable modem to work in another region.

Chapter 13: Useful Software. There are many software applications available that can help assist users with hacking cable modems. This chapter showcases all of the software you should download before attempting to hack a cable modem.

Chapter 14: Gathering Information. When hacking cable modems, you may need to know information about your current service provider and/or cable modem. This chapter discusses methods you can use to find this information.

Chapter 15: The Blackcat Programmer. One of the most advanced cable modem hacks involves making an E-JTAG interface cable to reprogram the flash chip inside a SB5100 cable modem. This chapter shows how to do this step by step and even includes a link to a freeware version of the software you can use to complete the process.

Chapter 16: Traditional Uncapping. No cable modem hacking book can be complete without the original hacking tutorial that was posted many years ago. While now obsolete, this revised version will show you how it all started.

Chapter 17: Building a Console Cable. An RS-232 to TTL converter cable is a very handy tool when communicating with a cable modem through what’s known as a console port. This chapter includes all the information to build such a cable, including a part list and a diagram.

Chapter 18: Changing Firmware. Changing firmware is the most important task when hacking a cable modem. The concept is to remove the code in your modem with code that you can use to your advantage. This chapter includes multiple methods, so there should be at least one that will work for you.

Chapter 19: Hacking the RCA. Older RCA/Thomson cable modems contain a flaw that you can exploit by shorting the EEPROM chip inside the modem that will in turn activate a secret developer’s menu that you can use to perform many factory functions, such as set the MAC address of the cable modem. This chapter will show you how to use this clever hack to your advantage.

Chapter 20: Hacking the WebSTAR. This chapter shows how to use a console port to hack into the WebSTAR cable modem and retrieve a password. After you have learned the password, you can use it to access a secret webpage in the cable modem that will allow you to change its firmware. The main purpose of this chapter is to show you the process of using previously learned material from this book to hack a cable modem.

Chapter 21: The Surfboard Factory Mode. The most advanced cable modem hack in this book shows you how to unlock a secret feature in the popular Surfboard series cable modem. By using this secret feature, you can write executable data into the modem to invoke the firmware upgrade process.

Chapter 22: Hacking the D-Link modem. One of the most insecure cable modems available today is the D-Link cable modem (models 201/202). By default this cable modem has a Telnet server which you can use to gain administration control of the modem.

Chapter 23: Securing the Future. The final chapter of this book discusses the vulnerabilities of cable modem networks and what can be done to make them more secure.  The tone of this chapter is different that previous ones as it is trying to put back together the pieces that have been torn apart.

Appendix A: Questions. From time to time, you may have a question or two about cable modems, cable modem service, or hacking in general. This question and answer section can also be used as a reference guide to other chapters in this book.

Appendix B: Disassembling. Throughout the book there are references to disassembling firmware, which is a very advanced topic. This appendix is designed to show you how to do it and even teach you a little about firmware assembly, the starting point for firmware hacks.

Appendix C: Cross-Compiling. Did you know it’s possible to compile C/C++ code on your computer and then run it in your cable modem? This section shows you how to setup a cross-compiling environment using freeware software and then how to compile the beginners program “Hello world!” that you can install and use in your cable modem.

Appendix D: Glossary. The last section of this book is a collection of popular cable modem related acronyms and references to where each acronym is used in the book.