As we enter the holiday season, it is important to be aware that human error is the most successful gateway for many data breaches. No matter how enhanced our company’s cybersecurity measures, hackers are getting more sophisticated. Social engineering is one of the ways that criminals obtain private information that they can use to steal identity or money from accounts. Social engineering is a ploy to trick users to give up passwords or other confidential information through phone calls, messages, or emails. They often tailor their attacks to their victims by using information gathered through the victim’s social media accounts. 

Social engineering attacks exploit human weakness by using deception. This can include building trust with the victim so that the victim will cooperate. An example is someone calling, pretending to be with the government and claiming that the user’s social security number has been compromised. The victim might feel obligated to cooperate by providing information as well as transferring money. 

What Makes People Vulnerable to Social Engineering? Social engineering is often successful because the ploy is designed to take advantage of human vulnerabilities. A lack of cybersecurity awareness is one of the main contributors to social engineering attacks. Cybersecurity awareness training should include practical exercises that simulate real social engineering attacks so that individuals will know how to respond.