{"id":4129,"date":"2019-10-31T16:43:47","date_gmt":"2019-10-31T20:43:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.valdosta.edu\/it\/?p=4129"},"modified":"2019-11-04T08:31:42","modified_gmt":"2019-11-04T13:31:42","slug":"cybersecurity-awareness-secure-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.valdosta.edu\/it\/2019\/10\/31\/cybersecurity-awareness-secure-it\/","title":{"rendered":"Cybersecurity Awareness: Secure IT"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Own,<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Navigate the Phishy Social Engineering Ocean<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Article by: SANS Security Awareness<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whether we like it or not, we all\nhave a digital footprint. Information about both our professional and personal\nlives are exposed, floating around the vast cyber ocean. Even if you prefer postal\nmail, telephone conversations, and writing checks, we\u2019re all at risk for\nfalling victim to social engineering attacks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The piranhas in the ocean (the\nadversaries) try their best to trick us into sharing confidential, personal\ninformation. And their most common attack vector is via social engineering.\nThis trickery can occur through email, phone, face-to-face, or the stormy web.\nIt makes social engineering a major factor in cyber security awareness and\nprotecting our digital footprint.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Navigating the Social Engineering Ocean<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cyber attackers and social engineers\nwill modify their tactics, but there are some common signs to help you\nrecognize an attack. Let\u2019s look at a cyber criminal\u2019s trends and tactics. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Phishing<\/strong> \u2013 Using e-mail to trick you into providing sensitive\ninformation, to include a Reply to the original malicious e-mail, clicking on\nbogus links or opening attachments, and entering data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spear Phishing\u2013<\/strong> These are phishing attempts aimed at specific\ntargets, such as research engineers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pretexting<\/strong> \u2013 Typically utilized in email, this is a technique\nwhere a fake situation is created using publicly available details on the\ntarget where the information is used for manipulation or impersonation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Scareware<\/strong> \u2013 As the name implies, a frightful pop-up attempting\nyou to type in confidential, personal, and private information in order to\nrectify an infected computer issue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vishing<\/strong> \u2013 Utilizing the telephone in attempt to trick you\ninto providing valuable, most likely confidential, information. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Baiting<\/strong> \u2013 An attempt to hook you in by\noffering goods, such as a free device or gift card.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the 2018 Data Breach Investigations Report<\/a>, phishing and pretexting represent 98% of social incidents, and 93% of breaches. Coming in at 96%, e-mail continues to be the most common vector<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While their tactics may seem difficult to spot on the surface, here are some common ways to spot and thwart social engineering attempts while navigating the social engineering ocean. They include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n