Updated on January 5, 2023 by Anthony Jones
Over the years, social engineering attacks on businesses have gotten more notorious. It has become even more advanced. Cybercrime will not be put on hold any time soon. As a result, hackers have had to get more inventive in their attempts to trick employees and others into disclosing their personal information. It’s time for companies like yours to perform proper research and use the necessary tools to stay ahead of scammers.
The Rising Risk of Social Engineering Attacks
Social engineering is a type of attack that is becoming increasingly common, as it is often more effective and less expensive than other types of attacks. Attackers can target anyone, regardless of their technical knowledge. That’s why it’s important to be aware of the threat and take steps to protect yourself, and your company.
The rising risk of social engineering attacks is a serious concern for businesses and individuals alike. This type of attack is often used to gain access to sensitive information or systems, and can be very difficult to detect and prevent.
Businesses need to be aware of the risks posed by social engineering attacks and take steps to protect themselves. This includes educating employees about the dangers of these attacks and implementing security measures such as two-factor authentication. Individuals also need to be aware of the risks and take steps to protect themselves. This includes being cautious about giving out personal information, being suspicious of unsolicited communications, and not clicking on links or opening attachments from unknown sources.
What Is Social Engineering?
Social engineering is a form of cyberattack where hackers utilize psychological manipulation to trick unwitting victims into making security blunders and handing over their personal data. Social engineering is the manipulation of human emotions like greed, fear, rage, curiosity, etc., to get victims to click on harmful URLs or participate in physical tailgaters.
The purpose of social engineering attackers is one of two things:
- They want to disrupt a company’s operation by tampering with its data.
- They want to steal data and/or money.
When posing as IT helpdesk staff, for example, an intruder could act as a user and ask for personal information such as a user name and password. The fact that so many individuals are willing to give over their personal information, especially if it appears to be coming from a reputable representative, is astonishing. Essentially, social engineering is the use of deception to persuade others to give up their personal information or data to gain access to it.
How Does Social Engineering Work?
In social engineering, attackers use human interaction to trick people into revealing information that they wouldn’t otherwise give up. They are able to do this by posing as a customer service representative and asking for your account number, or pretending to be a co-worker and requesting your password. Attackers can also use physical means to access information, such as dumpster diving or shoulder surfing. Once they have the access information, they can use it to commit fraud or identity theft.
Social Engineering Attacks: Recognizing the Telltale Signs
Social engineering attacks are difficult to detect, as the attacker’s goal is to make their message look as legitimate as possible. However, there are some signs that you can look for that may indicate that a message is part of a calculated attack. These include unexpected requests for sensitive information, a sense of urgency or threats, and text messages that are not addressed to you by name.
Secondly, if you receive an unsolicited email or message from someone purporting to be from a legitimate organization or company, be wary. This is especially true if the message contains personal information or is asking you to click on a link. If you receive a suspicious text message, you should not respond to it and should instead report it to the organization that it claims to be from.
Messages from social engineers often have a sense of urgency or threaten some sort of negative consequence if the victim does not respond. For example, the attacker may claim that the victim’s account has been compromised and that they need to provide their login information to prevent it from being suspended.
Understanding the warning signs and avoiding attacks are two of the greatest strategies to protect your company from social engineering attacks. Some of the indicators that you should be on the lookout for include:
- Requesting emergency help.
- Asking for proof of your identity.
- Excessively friendly speech.
- An excessive focus on specifics.
- Using offerings that sound too good to be true in an attempt to lure customers in.
- Threatening strict reprimands if their demands are not met.
How the Most Common Types of Social Engineering Attacks Work
Phishing – One of the most common methods of social engineering is phishing, which involves sending fraudulent emails or other communications in an attempt to trick the recipient into revealing sensitive information or clicking on a malicious link.
Spear Phishing – A spear phishing attack is a type of phishing attack in which the attacker targets a specific individual or organization. The attacker will usually create a fake email or website that appears to be from a trusted source, in order to trick the victim into entering their personal information or clicking on a malicious link. Spear phishing attacks can be very difficult to detect, as the attacker will often have done their research in order to make their fake email or website look as legitimate as possible. If you receive an email or visit a website that looks suspicious, it is important to be cautious and not click on any links or enter any personal information.
Vishing – A vphishing attack is a type of phishing attack that uses voice calls instead of email or text messages to try to trick victims into giving up personal information. The attackers will often pose as a legitimate organization or person and try to get the victim to give them sensitive information like credit card numbers, account passwords, or Social Security numbers. They may also try to get victims to install malware on their computers or devices. Vphishing attacks can be very difficult to spot, since the caller may sound legitimate and the caller ID may even be spoofed to look like a legitimate organization. If you receive a suspicious call, do not give out any personal information and hang up immediately. You can also report the call to the authorities.
Smishing – Here, the attacker attempts to trick the victim into providing sensitive information or clicking on a malicious link by sending them a text message or SMS. Smishing attacks often use spoofed sender information to make the text message appear to come from a legitimate source, such as a bank, delivery company, or ecommerce merchant. If the victim responds to the smishing message, the attacker may then direct them to a malicious website that looks similar to the legitimate website of the organization that they claimed to be from. The victim may be asked to enter their login information or other sensitive information on this fake website, which the attacker can then use to gain access to their account.
Mining Social Media – In a social engineering attack that mines social media information, the attacker will use various social media platforms to collect data about their target. This data can be used to create a profile of the target, which can then be used to exploit their trust.
Physical Mining – This kind of attack uses physical means to gather information from a target location. One type of physical mining would be dumpster diving, or looking through trash for sensitive information. It may also involve stealing information from a person’s office or home.
Tailgating – This is when a social engineer gains access to a secure area by following someone else. Attackers use deception to gain access and often combine it with other types of attacks, such as phishing or spear phishing, to increase the chances of success.
How To Prevent Social Engineering Attacks
1. Multi-Factor Authentication
One factor isn’t enough to keep your account safe, so don’t rely on just one. The password, of course, provides protection, but we’ve come to recognize that they’re insufficient on their own. So that someone else can guess your password and gain access to your accounts more easily. Access to the passwords can be gained by using social engineering techniques. Security questions, biometric access, and OTP codes are all examples of multi-factor authentication.
2. Implement Next-Gen Cloud-Based WAF
The next generation of web application cloud-based firewalls is specifically designed to offer optimal security against social engineering assaults, even if you already use one in your business. Unlike the classic WAF, the online WAF is a completely different beast. A web application or website can be continuously monitored by AppTrana for unusual activity or misbehavior. Social engineering assaults rely on human error, but the software will block them and notify you of any attempted malware installations. One of the greatest strategies to prevent social engineering attacks and any possible penetration is to use risk-based WAF.
3. Make Effective Use Of A Spam Filter
Your email program may need to be tweaked to remove more spam or flag questionable emails if it isn’t doing so already. The best spam filters use a variety of facts to identify spam emails. Scammers use a variety of techniques to identify potentially harmful files and links. They can use tools like a blacklist or a sender ID analyzer that can look for red flags in messages. You are probably thinking if this is something that could happen. The truth is, if you take the time to think about the issue and see if it’s believable, you’ll be able to tell many social engineering attacks from actual ones.
4. Inspect Your Computer For An SSL Certificate.
Hackers can’t access information included in encrypted data, emails, or communication, regardless of how it’s intercepted by a third party. This can be done by purchasing SSL certificates from reputable organizations. Additionally, you should always double-check the legitimacy of the website you’re about to divulge private information. Make a note of the URLs to make sure the site is real. Trusted and encrypted websites begin with the prefix HTTPS://. Websites that begin with HTTP:// do not provide a safe channel of communication.
5. Continuously Monitor Crucial Systems.
If you have important information on your system, make sure it is being monitored around the clock! Trojans, for example, may rely on a system that is susceptible to exploit it. It is possible to detect vulnerabilities in your system by scanning both external and internal systems with Web application scanning. A social engineering engagement, at least once a year, can help you determine if your staff are vulnerable to social engineering attacks. Fake domains, if any exist, can be immediately removed to prevent online copyright infringement.
6. Investigate The Source Of The Information.
Consider the source of the communication before taking it at its value. What if you find a USB stick on your desk and have no idea what it is? Do you receive an unexpected phone call telling you that you’ve inherited $5 million? Your CEO sent you an email asking for a slew of personal information about each of your workers? Every one of these seems suspect, and it’s important to proceed with caution. Identifying the source is not difficult. Take a look at the email’s header, for example, and compare it to other valid emails from the sender. Make sure to hover your cursor over the links to see if they’ve been faked (do not click the link, though!) Emails with glaring spelling issues are likely to be a hoax because banks have entire departments devoted to developing consumer communications. If you’re unsure if an email or message is legit, check out the company’s website and get in touch with an official representative.
7. Ensure That Your Security Patches Are Up-to-Date.
To gain unauthorized access to your data, cybercriminals hunt for flaws in your application, software, or systems. Always keep your security updates up to current and make sure your online browsers and operating systems are up to date. This is because security fixes are issued anytime a company discovers a security issue. Keep your systems up to date with the latest release to prevent cyber-attacks and maintain a cyber-resilient setting.
Related article: 5 Practical Ways to Improve Your Security Posture.
Protect Your Company with AWA
The dangers of social engineering attacks are on the rise, and they are now a big concern for companies of all kinds when it comes to cybersecurity. To avoid being a victim of social engineering, make sure your company has the right defenses in place. Your company’s security staff has to be notified as soon as a security event occurs so that they can take prompt action.
Learn more about AWA’s social engineering testing services.
