// Comparison

Les virus informatiques : théorie, pratique et applications vs Practical Reverse Engineering: Which Should You Read?

Two cybersecurity books on Malware, compared honestly: who each is for, what each does best, and which to read first.

Advanced

5/52009

Les virus informatiques : théorie, pratique et applications

Éric Filiol

Éric Filiol's reference French-language treatment of computer virology. Formal theory, infection mechanisms, offensive and defensive applications, with academic rigor rare on the topic.

Advanced

4/52014

Practical Reverse Engineering

x86, x64, ARM, Windows Kernel, Reversing Tools, and Obfuscation

Bruce Dang, Alexandre Gazet, Elias Bachaalany

A working reverser's textbook from three Microsoft / Quarkslab veterans, covering the architectures and toolchain you'll actually meet on real targets, including the Windows kernel and modern obfuscation patterns.

Read this if

French-reading security students, researchers, advanced malware analysts who want a formal treatment — French-language literature on the topic is thin.

Reverse engineers transitioning from "I can read disassembly" to "I can audit a Windows kernel driver." The architecture-first companion to Practical Malware Analysis.

Skip this if

Readers looking for a tooling manual or introduction. Filiol writes dense; algorithmic and systems fundamentals are required.

Beginners with no assembly background, or readers focused exclusively on Linux/userland. The book is heavy on Windows internals and assumes you'll do the exercises in WinDbg.

Key takeaways

Prix Roberval 2005 (higher-education category) — one of the few French cyber books awarded at that level.
Filiol is a former military cryptanalyst and ran ESAT then ESIEA's virology lab; academic sourcing is visible chapter by chapter.
The only French-language book that treats computer virology with university-textbook rigor.

x86, x64, ARM, kernel-mode debugging, and anti-RE techniques in a single coherent volume; nothing else competes for breadth.
The kernel debugging chapters are the practical introduction the official Windows Internals book never quite delivers for security audiences.
Anti-RE coverage (obfuscation, packing, anti-debug, virtualization-based protection) is the bridge to modern malware analysis that PMA consciously skips.

How they compare

We rate Les virus informatiques : théorie, pratique et applications higher (5/5 against 4/5 for Practical Reverse Engineering). For most readers, that means Les virus informatiques : théorie, pratique et applications is the primary pick and Practical Reverse Engineering is a useful follow-up.

Both books target advanced-level readers, so the choice is about topic, not difficulty.

Les virus informatiques : théorie, pratique et applications and Practical Reverse Engineering both cover Malware, Reverse Engineering, so reading them in sequence reinforces the same material from different angles.

Keep reading