Social Engineering Explanation, Illustrations of Methods, Assault Strategies, and Prevention Measures
In the late 19th century, the term "social engineering" was first coined by French industrialist JC Van Marken. Fast forward to the present day, and this age-old tactic has evolved into a significant cybersecurity threat.
Social engineering is the art and science of controlling the masses to comply with one's wish, and it's the catalyst for 93% of successful data breaches. It's a psychological trickery-based approach that cybercriminals use to manipulate individuals into divulging sensitive information or performing actions that compromise security.
One of the most common forms of social engineering attack is phishing. Phishing aims to persuade the recipient into taking a specific action, such as clicking a malicious link or revealing personal details, that will serve the cybercriminal's goals. A staggering 97% of users can't spot a sophisticated phishing message.
Scareware is another form of social engineering that creates confusion, shock, and anxiety to manipulate users into buying or installing malicious software. Hackers can disguise themselves as technical support of an organization, and any offers or requests from them should be considered as scams.
Unsolicited bulk emailing can increase the risk of flooding the employee's inbox with malicious links, potentially leading to a major phishing attack. During the COVID-19 pandemic, cybercriminals used social engineering to present malicious files as COVID-19-related company policies.
In recent years, social engineering has been used in various ways, including phishing emails that impersonate trusted institutions to steal personal data, pretexting where attackers create false scenarios to gain confidential information, and baiting involving enticing victims with false offers to extract sensitive details. The 2020 Twitter hack, where attackers used social engineering to gain access to celebrity accounts for cryptocurrency scams, is a widely reported case.
Whaling is a digitally enabled fraud that targets high-ranked or highly privileged employees in an organization. In spear phishing, the perpetrator engineers their message to be extremely appealing to a specific pool of victims.
To combat these threats, it's crucial to adopt robust security measures. Incorporating two-factor or multi-factor authentication prevents 99.9% of cyberattacks. If an employee may have given away their password to a bad actor, an instant change in the password can help minimize the damage.
AI-powered email security solutions like Graphus can detect and quarantine potential phishing attempts by learning the unique communication pattern of an organization. Setting the spam filter to high in your email client can help stop more suspicious messages. Text messages asking users to reply with temporary passwords received on their devices should be avoided.
In conclusion, social engineering is a pervasive and evolving threat in the digital world. By understanding its tactics and implementing effective security measures, we can protect ourselves and our organizations from these insidious attacks.
