Social Engineering Defined
How is social engineering defined? We define social engineering this way, "Any act that influences a person to take an action that may or may not be in their best interest". Our primary focus in this framework is malicious social engineering. However, both positive and malicious aspects of social engineering implement the same principles. With this in mind, it is also important to understand the…
What is Social Engineering?
What Is Social Engineering?
Social Engineering (SE) is a blend of science, psychology, and art. While it is amazing and complex, it is also very simple.
We define it as "Any act that influences a person to take an action that may or may not be in their best interest." We have defined it in very broad and general terms because we feel that social engineering is not always negative,…
Social-Engineer Newsletter – Volume 4 Issue 52
The Year of the Social Engineer
2013 was an epic year. There were a lot of major events and a lot of serious breaches over the last 12 months. For most of us, the use of social engineering in a large portion of these breaches was most notable. It was estimated that over 65% of the attacks used some form of social engineering such as phishing, phone, or in person. Let’s take a look at just two…
Social-Engineer Newsletter – Volume 4 Issue 49
The Power and Influence of Social Media
Foursquare check-in at the coffee shop. Let's get on Yelp! and find a good Mexican restaurant. I just got 7 new "Friend" requests after last nights party. Is there anyone who hasn't used some sort of social media in the past month? Anyone? And as a counselor, my next question is, How does that make you feel? Based on the sheer pervasiveness of social media…
Social-Engineer Newsletter – Volume 4 Issue 46
Can Sylvester Stallone Predict The Future?
SYLVESTER STALLONE CAN PREDICT THE FUTURE!?!? Nope. But bear with us. For those of us who have seen Demolition Man, that awful 1993 sci-fi vehicle about a futuristic SoCal, you may remember a scene where the villain holds a meeting in which all attendees are represented by telepresence.
Now while the original concept is old news in the face of video…
Social-Engineer Newsletter – Volume 4 Issue 43
Information Gathering: Low-Tech
Information gathering is the single most important part of any social engineering engagement. Even though gathering, cataloging, and sifting through information is the least sexy part of social engineering, it is a critical phase. The more time you spend gathering information, the more information you will have. The more information you have, the better your…
Real Life and the Application of Social Engineering Part VI
Everything must come to an end, and this story is no different. I would like to take the time again to thank Chris “loganWHD” Hadnagy for getting me to open up and tell this story and Jay Trinckes for putting a spit polish on my crude words. Now, on to the story...
After the frame job, I transferred to another bar at a nearby Post where the manager was a friend. The new bar had a lot bigger…
Social-Engineer Newsletter – Volume 4 Issue 42
Talk to Strangers- Part 2: Keeping Them on the Hook
Last month at Social-Engineer.org we taught you how to approach strangers and get them to at least entertain the idea of having a conversation with you. If you haven’t yet read Part 1 of our Talking to Strangers series, I recommend you do that now. For those of you that have read it (and those just returning... welcome back, btw!), let’s recap…