Why Do Cyber Attackers Commonly Use Social Engineering?
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Reading Time: 7 min
Cyber attackers use Social engineering which are a type of attack that targets the human element, rather than the computer system and its software. The attacker attempts to trick a person into performing an action that allows them to gain access to the victims’ computers. One of the most common types of this kind of an attack is a man-in-the-middle attack. A man-in-the-middle attack occurs when an attacker impersonates someone else to fool the victims into believing they are talking directly to each other via normalizing protocols like interactive voice response, email, instant messaging, and web conferencing. Hacking through human manipulation is easier to execute than hacking directly from an external source. This article discusses why SE attacks are on the rise and why cyber attackers commonly use these tactics.
Key Takeaways
- Social engineering attacks manipulate the human element, making them a preferred method for cybercriminals.
- Attacks often exploit trust and human relationships, requiring minimal technical skills from the attacker.
- Diving into discarded materials can provide attackers with sensitive information without the need for hacking techniques.
- Emotional triggers such as fear, greed, and urgency significantly increase the likelihood of a successful social engineering attack.
- Certain personality traits, like agreeableness and extraversion, make individuals more susceptible to social engineering tactics.
Why do Cyber Attackers use Social Engineering: Probable Causes & Reasons
Social engineering attacks are one of the most popular and effective methods used by hackers today. These attacks often exploit human-to-human relationships, such as employee trust and familiarity, or physical proximity between employees, and customers.
a. The Human Element Is The Weakest Link In Traditional Security
Attacks tend to be more effective when they rely on human interaction, which means that there is no way for technology to protect us from them. All an attacker needs is a bit of information about their target’s habits or preferences and some creativity in how they present themselves to the victim. This results in the attackers getting what they want without having to resort to more complicated techniques, like hacking into an organization’s network or breaking into a company’s systems.
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b. There’s No Need for Advanced Hacking Techniques
Social engineering attacks utilize the trust of people to gain access to a system or network. These attacks are effective because it is easy for an attacker to gain access, rather than using advanced hacking techniques to brute force their way into a network. When an attacker does this, they typically use psychologically manipulative techniques such as phishing, spear phishing, and pretexting. ➜ Phishing is when an attacker sends emails that appear legitimate but are designed to trick users into giving up their personal information like passwords or credit card details. ➜ Spear phishing is when an attacker uses the same methods as phishing but with more advanced techniques such as impersonating someone else to fool you into giving up your information. ➜ Pretexting scams refers to when an attacker uses pretenses to gain the trust of their victims before attempting to steal from them. Once attackers have gained access to your system or network they can do anything they want inside it including installing programs, modifying files, or even deleting them all without getting caught by a security system or administrator who could stop them from doing so if they knew what was happening inside their network!
c. Dumpster Diving is Easier Than Brute Forcing Into a Network
Dumpster diving is the act of retrieving information from discarded materials to carry out social engineering attacks. The technique involves searching through the trash for treasures like access codes or passwords written down on sticky notes. Dumpster diving makes such activities easy to carry out because it allows the hacker to gain access to the network without actually having to break in. The information that dumpster divers unearth can range from the mundane, such as a phone list or calendar, to more seemingly innocent data like an organizational chart. But this seemingly innocent information can assist an attacker in using social engineering techniques to gain access to the network. In addition, if a computer has been disposed of, it could be a treasure-house for cyber attackers. It is possible to recover information from storage media, including drives that have been erased or improperly formatted. Stored passwords and trusted certificates are often stored on the computer and are vulnerable to attack. The discarded equipment may contain sensitive data on the Trusted Platform Module (TPM). This data is important to an organization because it allows them to securely store sensitive information, such as cryptographic keys. A social engineer could leverage the hardware IDs that are trusted by an organization to craft potential exploits against their users.
d. Makes Use Of People’s Fear, Greed, And A Sense Of Urgency
Social engineering attacks are easy to carry out because they rely on the human element. The cyber attacker may use charm, persuasion, or intimidation to manipulate the person’s perception or exploit the person’s emotion to get important details about their company. For instance, a cyber attacker might talk with a company’s disgruntled employee to get hidden information, which can then be used to break into the network. The disgruntled employee may provide information about the company to an attacker if he/she feels that he/she is being treated unfairly or mistreated by his/her current employer. The disgruntled employee may also provide information about the company if he/she doesn’t have another job and will be out of work soon. The more advanced methods of hacking would involve breaking into a network using more advanced techniques like malware, keyloggers, and Trojans. These advanced techniques would require much more time and effort than just talking with a disgruntled employee to get hidden information that can be used in breaking into a network.
The Six Major Principles of Influence
Social engineering scams exploit six specific vulnerabilities in the human psyche. These vulnerabilities are identified by psychologist Robert Cialdini in his book “Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion” and they are: ➜ Reciprocity – Reciprocity is the desire to repay favors in kind. We tend to feel indebted to people who have helped us; we feel like it’s our responsibility to help them out. So when someone asks us for something—a password, access to financial records, or anything else—we’re more likely to comply if they’ve helped us before. ➜ Commitment and consistency – We tend to do things over time rather than just once. We’re more likely to agree with a request if we’ve already agreed with one of its parts—or even several. If someone has asked for access to your financial records before, perhaps asking again isn’t such a big deal after all! ➜ Social Proof – It is a deception technique that relies on the fact that we tend to follow the lead of people around us (also known as the “bandwagon effect”). For instance, employees could be swayed by a threat actor who presents false evidence that another employee has complied with a request. ➜ Liking – We like people who seem like they’re in charge; so, a hacker might send a message to your email address that looks like it’s from your boss or a friend of yours, or even an expert in a field you’re interested in. The message might say something like, “Hey! I know you’re working on this project and we need some help. Can we get together sometime soon?” It usually asks for your help—and by agreeing, you’re giving away sensitive information. ➜ Authority – People generally submit to authority figures because we see them as the “right” ones for us to follow and obey. In this way, social engineering tactics can exploit our tendency to trust those who seem authoritative to get what they want from us. ➜ Scarcity – Scarcity is a human instinct that’s hardwired into our brains. It’s the feeling of “I need this now,” or “I should have this.” So when people are being scammed by social engineers, they’ll feel a sense of urgency to give up their money or information as soon as possible.
Personalities that Are Vulnerable to Social Engineering & Why?
According to Dr. Margaret Cunningham, the principal research scientist for human behavior with Forcepoint X-Labs—a cybersecurity company—agreeableness and extraversion are the personality traits most vulnerable to social engineering exploits. Agreeable people tend to be trusting, friendly, and willing to follow directions without question. They make good candidates for phishing attacks because they are more likely to click on links or open attachments from emails that appear genuine. Extroverts are also more susceptible to social engineering assaults because they often prefer being around others and they may be more likely to trust others. They are more likely to be suspicious of others’ motives than introverted people are, which might cause them to be deceived or manipulated by a social engineer.
Personalities that Are Resilient to Social Engineering & Why?
People who are resilient to social engineering assaults tend to be conscientious, introverted, and have a high self-efficacy. Conscientious people are the most likely to be able to resist social engineering scams by focusing on their own needs and desires. They are also less likely to conform to the demands of others. Introverts tend to be less susceptible to external manipulation because they take time for themselves and enjoy solitude, which means that they are less likely to be influenced by social cues or pushy people who try to influence them. Self-efficacy is important because it helps us believe in ourselves, so we have more confidence that we can resist pressure from others or outside influences.
Protect Your Organization From Social Engineering Scams with PowerDMARC
Social engineering is the practice of manipulating employees and customers into divulging sensitive information that can be used to steal or destroy data. In the past, this information has been obtained by sending emails that look like they came from legitimate sources such as your bank or your employer. Today, it’s much easier to spoof email addresses. PowerDMARC helps protect against this type of attack by deploying email authentication protocols like SPF, DKIM, and DMARC p=reject policy in your environment to minimize the risk of direct domain spoofing and email phishing attacks. If you’re interested in protecting yourself, your company, and your clients from social engineering attacks, sign up for our free DMARC trial today! 
Domain & Email Security Expert at PowerDMARC
Ahona is the Marketing Manager at PowerDMARC, with 5+ years of experience in writing about cybersecurity topics, specializing in domain and email security. Ahona holds a post-graduation degree in Journalism and Communications, solidifying her career in the security sector since 2019.
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