One popular cyber-attack method known as social engineering leverages human psychology to gather information and perform attacks instead. Social engineering is the psychological manipulation of people into performing actions or divulging confidential information.
A key concept of social engineering is understanding how humans react, and how stress or pressure can be leveraged to meet a desired action.
As a result, attackers generally leverage seven key principles when engineering an individual - often combining multiple principles into a single attack.
Intimidation tactics are used by hackers to scare an individual into taking the desired action of the social engineer.
Cyber-criminals leverage positive feelings towards the social engineer or the organization they claim to represent due to an existing bond.
Social engineers work to build a connection with the targeted employee.
Social engineers may use a variety of techniques - both technical and nontechnical - to implement the above principles when performing an attack.
One of the most common technical techniques an attacker may use is phishing.
Phishing is a broad term that describes the fraudulent collection of information, often focused on usernames, passwords, credit card numbers, and related sensitive information.
One of the best ways an organization can defend against phishing attacks is through employee awareness training.
A phishing attack can occur to anyone at an organization, so it is crucial that all employees are taught how to recognize and respond to phishing attacks.
Other technical cyber-attack techniques may include website attacks which redirect traffic away from a legitimate website to a malicious one.
This attack relies on a user misspelling a URL and ending up at a similarly named malicious site.
A social engineer may deploy a website named googl.com, attacking individuals who have accidentally misspelled the popular website google.com.
Tailgating is a common physical entry attack that relies on following someone into a building or restricted area after they have opened the door.
Much like phishing, tailgating is best prevented through awareness training as well as through implementing security measures such as requiring each employee to use their own badge or credentials to access protected facilities.
Contrary to its name, it is important to note that attackers may use a variety of methods, other than simply peering over someone's shoulder, when deploying this technique.
Social engineering is one of the most challenging cybersecurity threats to protect against, as it targets individual reasoning.
The best way an organization can fortify against these attacks is through conducting comprehensive, periodic social engineering training.
This training should not only educate employees on the common social engineering principles, techniques, and attacks covered in this article, but also equip them with the necessary tools and knowledge to identify and proactively avert potential attacks.
This Cyber News was published on www.cyberdefensemagazine.com. Publication date: Tue, 26 Dec 2023 06:13:05 +0000