Reddit mentions of Rootkits: Subverting the Windows Kernel: Subverting the Windows Kernel

And to anyone who wants to learn from the other side, I can recommend Rootkits: Subverting the Windows Kernel.

I actually already have a copy of Hacking: The Art of Exploitation. My personal library consists of around 45 books on a range of computing topics from PHP, MySQL, C++, Windows Internals, CCNA, MCSE/MCSA, Unix, Rootkits, AI, Data Structures and the list goes on.

Other relevant titles include Gray Hat Python, Reversing: Secrets of Reverse Engineering and Rootkits: Subverting the Windows Kernel.

I was going to buy the following: Assembly Language Step-by-step, SQL Injection Attacks and Defense and Metasploit: The Penetration Tester's Guide.

I agree that where one starts really depends on what they want to end up doing. "Hacking" is such a general term and SQL-Injections is completely different from finding 0-days. If I'm honest I'm not sure where to start but I'm open to suggestions.

​

Application Security:

• The Art of Software Security Assessment
  
• A Bug Hunter's Diary
  
  Web Security:
  
  
• The Tangled Web
  
  Secure Systems
  
  
• A Guide to Kernel Exploitation
  
• Rootkits
  

I think Bender(Bending)Rodriguez was referring to this one:

https://www.amazon.com/Rootkits-Subverting-Windows-Greg-Hoglund/dp/0321294319/

I would also offer my recommendation for that book as well. It's definitely dated, but an excellent starting point on how to build your own rootkit.

That said, I'm not sure that really answers your "where do I get rootkits?" question. In answer to that, I'll offer a few tools that are heavier on the "post-exploitation agent", but still worth checking out:

• ThrowbackLP has user-land persistence via Windows services
  
• PowerShell Empire has user-land persistence via the registry and scheduled tasks