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Exploring Human Vulnerability in Great Depth
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A vulnerability has its advantages. However, can we apply this same principle to the field of social engineering? Being a victim of social engineering is a risky business. Vulnerable is defined by Merriam-Webster as “capable of being physically or emotionally hurt.”
All humans fall under the scope of the term. What a strong statement. “Not me, I am smarter than that,” I hear you say. That makes sense to me. There’s a saying in my line of work: “There’s no patch for ignorance.” Initially, it may seem like a joke, but the more I think about it, the more I find myself disturbed.
Exploring Human Vulnerability in Great Depth
How Vulnerable Is Everybody?
To influence individuals into “doing acts that are not in their best interests,” I developed the world’s first framework for social engineering a decade ago. Over the following decade, this concept became the basis for five books, all of which explored human decision-making and the ways in which evil individuals may take advantage of it.
You could get the impression that the person who came up with and set the rules for all of this is impervious to deception. Confidence attacks have lately harmed my company, my charity, and my personal reputation.
One of the most important lessons in my life has come from it. For this piece, rather than dwelling on the minutiae (which I may do in a subsequent one), let me share some of the science that helped me recognize where I was weak.
An effect is known as Halo.
Thorndike conducted a study of industrial employees in the early 20th century in which employers were asked to rank individuals based on personal attributes. What he found was fascinating: that those who were good-looking were believed to be more intelligent, despite no such evidence of intellectual ability. To put it another way, if you’re beautiful, we’ll assume you’re smart. As a result, the halo effect was born.
People who are handsome are seen as more honest, talented, and trustworthy because of the halo effect. Of course, attractiveness has nothing to do with intelligence. Because of the halo effect, a pattern of blind faith developed in my mind. As a result, I made choices that put me in a vulnerable position.
The Overconfidence Bias
In the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary, have you ever said, “Well this [insert awful event here] won’t happen to me?” despite the overwhelming evidence? “What’s going on here? As a result of my optimism bias, I overlooked warning flags since I was too enthusiastic about what was to come. With the halo effect and the hijacked amygdala, I was forced to make a series of bad judgments.
The Ostrich Principle
While it may be amusing at first, the ostrich effect might be frightening if you have discovered a weakness in yourself. The ostrich effect occurs when our reasoning mind refuses to accept obvious truths, in effect burying our heads in the sand.
Despite the obvious signals that I was being lied to, neon flashing signs that I was being taken advantage of, and 150-point bold type, with bright red arrows pointing to where I might have noticed some significant warnings, I disregarded all of them. I buried my head in the sand like an ostrich in order to trust the already-decided-upon facts.
The Principles
I, too, spent a significant amount of time blaming myself for my failures. Herein lays the first, and maybe the most important, lesson to be learned. I am a human being. As a social engineer, I’ve spent the past decade or so researching human behaviour and decision-making. As a matter of fact, I’m just like everyone else. As a human being, I am vulnerable to my own prejudices, too.
In my case, it wasn’t merely a self-help lesson. How can we prevent it from happening again in the future? That was my primary goal.
- Let me be clear: I’m not going to tell you to just “control your prejudice.” “a remark like that is meaningless since it lacks context. A three-step strategy to counteract biases has been provided instead.
- Numerous advisors provide wisdom. You may avoid vulnerability by talking freely about a relationship you’re worried about with trustworthy partners, friends, and family members who aren’t involved.
- Don’t get carried away. The best moment to check for prejudice is when you are feeling extremely emotional, like with any social engineering assault.
- Thoughtful analysis. Making a habit of questioning yourself before you find yourself in a circumstance that necessitates it will help you avoid becoming vulnerable. This one is a little trickier.
Regardless of how smart or talented you are, there is no way to ensure that you will not be at risk. We must, in fact, be vulnerable in order to effectively guard our weaknesses. So, we must acknowledge that everyone has flaws, and we are no different. However, by being more self-aware, we may lessen the likelihood of our vulnerabilities being exploited.
Summary
Vulnerable is defined by Merriam-Webster as “capable of being physically or emotionally hurt”. Phishing emails, fraudulent phone calls, SMSiShing, or impersonation through social media or in-person are all examples of social engineering. Because of the halo effect, a pattern of blind faith developed in my mind. As a result of my optimism bias, I overlooked warning flags since I was too enthusiastic about what was to come. With the halo effect and the hijacked amygdala, I was forced to make a series of bad judgments.
I buried my head in the sand in order to trust the already-decided-upon facts. As a social engineer, I’m just like everyone else. As a human being, I am vulnerable to my own prejudices. There is no way to ensure that you will not be at risk. We must, in fact, be vulnerable in order to effectively guard our weaknesses.
Reference
- The Social Engineering Framework: https://www.social-engineer.org/framework/general-discussion/
- Human Hacking Book: https://smile.amazon.com/Human-Hacking-Friends-Influence-People/dp/0063…
- The halo effect: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/stretching-theory/202110/the-halo-effect-what-it-is-and-how-beat-it
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