Dictionary · Hacking Techniques and Methodologies
Social Engineering
Human layer · Beginner
Manipulating people into revealing information or taking an unsafe action. Defenses are verification procedures, training, and reporting paths that do not punish the reporter.
The target is a person's trust, urgency, or helpfulness. A callback to a known number, not the number in the message, breaks most of these tricks.
Example: A caller claims to be the help desk and asks for a password. The employee hangs up and dials the published help-desk number instead.
Common misconception
- This is not only email. Phone calls, texts, and in-person pretexts belong here too.