What social engineering means in cybersecurity
Social engineering is a technique used by cybercriminals to deceive people into revealing confidential information, sharing credentials, or granting unauthorized access to internal systems.
Unlike purely technical attacks, social engineering relies on manipulating emotions such as trust, urgency, or fear. Because of this, even experienced users can fall victim to fake emails, fraudulent calls, or messages that appear to come from a legitimate supplier or colleague.
Common tactics include phishing, smishing, vishing, pretexting, and impersonation on social networks or corporate platforms.
Why it is one of the most effective attacks
Social engineering is dangerous because attackers often research their targets beforehand. They analyze public information, professional profiles, corporate details, and internal posts to create credible and personalized messages.
A single click on a malicious link or the accidental disclosure of a password can allow attackers to infiltrate systems, steal sensitive data, or even deploy ransomware.
Most common techniques used by attackers
These attacks continue to evolve, but some of the most frequent techniques are:
Email phishing: legitimate-looking messages containing malicious links or files.
Smishing and vishing: SMS messages or phone calls requesting urgent information.
Impersonation: pretending to be a supplier, technical support, or company executive.
Credential harvesting: fake login pages imitating Microsoft 365, banks, and other services.
Social network manipulation: attackers contacting victims directly to build trust.
Most attacks work because they trigger emotional reactions that lead users to act without verifying authenticity.
How to prevent social engineering attacks
Prevention requires working on both human behavior and technological protection.
Training employees regularly helps them recognize suspicious emails, unusual requests, strange attachments, or messages written with a sense of urgency. Encouraging users to verify before responding is one of the strongest defenses.
Technology plays a crucial role as well. Advanced solutions such as Heimdal Security, Bitdefender, Kaspersky, Norton, Avast, Acronis, Teramind, 1Password, PowerDMARC, and SendMarc—all available through Aufiero Informática—help stop phishing attempts, secure credentials, enforce MFA, block unauthorized access, and detect abnormal behavior early.
Best practices to strengthen internal security
Alongside training and security tools, organizations should adopt clear internal policies:
Verify identities before sharing sensitive information.
Use MFA and password managers like 1Password.
Avoid opening unexpected attachments or clicking unknown links.
Use official communication channels for internal or vendor-related requests.
Have an incident response plan in place.
Apply the principle of least privilege to minimize the impact of compromised accounts.
Combined with solutions like Heimdal, which automates threat detection and response, or PowerDMARC, which protects domains from spoofing, these practices significantly reduce risk.
Conclusion
Social engineering remains one of the most common cyber threats because it targets people, not systems. With proper awareness training, internal policies, and modern security tools, organizations can drastically reduce the likelihood of an attack.
If your company wants to strengthen its cybersecurity posture, Aufiero Informática can help you implement leading technologies such as Heimdal, Bitdefender, Kaspersky, Norton, Acronis, and many more to protect against social engineering attacks and secure your critical assets.
