Even if you’re not familiar with the term “social engineering,”
you may have already been a victim of it. Maybe you’ve clicked
on a link in a spam email, or replied to an unsolicited request,
only to have your money or information stolen, or your computer
infected. Simply put, social engineering is what cybercriminals
use to persuade or deceive you into sharing sensitive
information or allowing access to your computer by pretending to
be someone or something they aren’t. This kind of trickery can
take many forms, both online and in the real world. You may
receive a “breaking news” email containing a dangerous link, or
receive a phone call from someone pretending to be from your
bank, requesting sensitive financial information. In both cases,
the cybercriminals are pretending to be legitimate entities to
get your attention. Another reason why social engineering is so
effective is that cybercriminals play on your emotions to get
what they want. For instance, after the earthquake and tsunami
in Japan cybercrimin