Social Engineering

When we read about data breaches in the news, we think of hackers sitting in a dark room using sophisticated technology to break through firewalls and steal passwords. However, the most common and effective tool for hacking is social engineering, where bad actors take advantage of vulnerabilities in our daily activities.

Here’s a fun example: Informatics student hacks her way to an A in cybersecurity course

So this holiday season, remember to exercise caution when clicking on links or downloading files from emails or texts that might be from a family member, if it seems too good to be true, is threatening or aggressive, or has even the slightest detail off that causes pause for authenticity. Here’s a list of the most recent Phishing trends and techniques to guard against.

I’ve personally seen “invoice phishing” and “whaling”. And a new one not mentioned on the list is “package not delivered due to wrong address, click the link and update your address for delivery”. Have a safe and happy holiday season!”