The Deadly Risk of Cyber Attacks on Hospitals

During a routine visit to the doctor, he asked what I did for a living. I explained that my work consists of helping companies to detect information security vulnerabilities. We then help them to test and train their employees to make the necessary corrections. My doctor listened attentively and said: “Thank you for the work that you do.” I did not expect that response. He went on to say that in…

QR Codes and CAPTCHA Tests: New Scams in a Digital Age

When you think about a scam, what comes to mind? Perhaps you think about receiving a poorly drafted email saying “You Just Won $500! Click HERE NOW!”. Maybe you think about a sketchy salesperson approaching you about a timeshare in Hawaii that seems way too good to be true. When we think about scams like these, it can be easy to say to ourselves: “I could never fall for something like that!”.…

The Visher and the Magician

As a child, I was obsessed with card tricks, sleight of hand, you name it. I enjoyed watching street magicians and how they could captivate an audience; how they could fool someone right under their noses with the simplest of gimmicks, yet leaving their spectator with only the imagination to figure out how they pulled it off. You could tell they had been doing this their entire life. I would…

Influence vs. Manipulation: What is the Difference

Can you think of people that have made a difference in your life? Perhaps your parents or maybe a teacher or mentor? They somehow helped you be a better person. Do you think of them as manipulating or influential? The words manipulation and influence are often used interchangeably. For example, one website describes social engineering as “a manipulation technique that exploits human error to gain…

Ep. 167 – Human Element Series – Paying Attention To The Human Side with Vanessa Bohns

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9o2PXqAm3vM Today we will be talking with Vanessa Bohns. Vanessa is a social psychologist and professor of organizational behavior at Cornell University. She holds a PhD from Columbia University and an AB from Brown University. Her writing has appeared in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Harvard Business Review, and her research has been widely…

Authentically Inauthentic

Part of the job of a social engineer is creating a good pretext or a good story, that you tell others to influence them to take a certain action. I have learned that one of the most important aspects of pretexting is impersonation. Impersonation is acting like or exhibiting the behavior of the person you are pretending to be. Impersonation can come naturally to some, but it did not for me. I…