Social Engineering: Psychological Warfare in the Cyberspace

Social Engineering: Psychological Warfare in the Cyberspace

From the usage of anti-money laundering software all the way to endpoint security, the enterprise space is always preparing for the next attack. Recognising the fact that as much as you train and prepare your organisation, adversaries will also continue to advance can be anxiety inducing. Yes, organisations lose billions every year to fraud and the beginning of 2021 was met with a huge influx in cybercrime, but it's the methods that the adversaries are using that is truly concerning. 

Social Engineering

Social engineering is a method used by adversaries in the cyberspace that works by gaining the trust of their target. By impersonating a colleague, bribing or blackmailing the victim or even just assuming the voice of an authoritative figure, adversaries are coercing employees into cooperating and, potentially, into wiring money to them. It's psychological warfare and it's not slowing down; social engineering attacks make up 98% of attacks every year, so what can you do to prevent it?

Educating us in this episode of The Next Phase of Cybersecurity is Greg Hancell, Senior Manager Fraud Consultancy at OneSpan. Greg details to us the use of automation in fraud operations, how AI is saving banks and what current methods an adversary might use in conducting a social engineering attack.