Social Engineering and Phishing
Understand social engineering attacks and how to protect yourself from them.
The most sophisticated cybersecurity systems can be defeated by tricking a human. Social engineering exploits human psychology — trust, fear, urgency — rather than technical vulnerabilities.
What Is Social Engineering?
Social engineering is the use of psychological manipulation to trick people into revealing confidential information or taking actions that compromise security. It exploits human tendencies like trust, helpfulness, and fear.
Common Social Engineering Attacks
- Phishing: Fake emails that look legitimate, asking for passwords or personal info
- Smishing: Phishing via text message
- Vishing: Phishing via phone call
- Pretexting: Creating a fake scenario to extract information
- Baiting: Offering something enticing to get you to click a malicious link
Watch for: urgency ("Act now!"), requests for passwords or personal info, unexpected prizes, threats, or requests from "IT support" to install software. Legitimate organizations rarely ask for passwords via email.
Ready to test your knowledge?
3 questions · Grade 4 level