Social Engineering: Assessing Vulnerabilities in Practice



Abstract

Purpose -The rationale behind these researches to figure out the degree of vulnerability of social engineering among staff within an organization.

Design/methodology/Approach - An electronic mail based test was done in which over 150 employees were sent the e-mails in order to ask them to clink on the link of an external website. E-mails were used as social engineering techniques and also formulated to send symbols of dishonesty in order to make aware security aware users. The website was designed in a bad order in order to raise the user's doubts and protecting them from going forward with the software installation.

Findings - despite of short window was appeared in the experiment, the results showed that 23% of the respondents were become fooled by the attack appeared on their screens, advising that many users had lack of awareness of security which is essential to keep them protect themselves online.

Research limitations/implications - After time duration of 3.5 hours the test was stopped and it was found that higher percentage of visits was being higher.

Practical implications - Apart from the limitations of this research, it was revealed that there is a higher level of vulnerability to social engineering attacks. This showed the need of user's awareness of social engineering and the corporative techniques are necessary.

Originality/value - This research is providing the user's vulnerability towards the problems by representing the outcomes of an e-mail oriented social engineering research which was taken place among the staff members.

Social Engineering: Assessing Vulnerabilities in Practice

Introduction

Social engineering is the map and the practical implementation of systems. Inducement of human groups, organizations or a community to achieve explicit objectives in the allocation of well being.

Illustration of such systems includes socially admiring investment and subsidies. Taxes and other sedges of property belongs from private ownership and regulations.

Social engineering is planned to bring an ethical and reasonable society. It pays attention on a proposed just allocation of society of basic human rights (e.g. food, health care, housing etc.) and unenthusiastic freedoms (e.g., liberty from want). One case of social engineering is the assenting achievement programs in the United States (Dodge, 2007). These are administration orders and rules intended to carry about racial and cultural diversity in the important U.S. organizations of trade, housing and education,. Other illustrations include minimum-wage regulations planned to decrease the ranks of the operational poor and personal social entrepreneurship business enterprises planned to basically alter the allocation of well-being in deprived community segments (Erianger, 2004).

Social engineering efficiency depends, on the honesty of choice makers to be active for the advantage of society and without look upon for their individual self-interest. Important moral principles include honesty, integrity, social responsibility, and empathy, the avoidance of conflict of interest, compassion, and justice.

There are balance between moral ideals and real world results that call for deliberation of positive and pessimistic rights (e.g., freedom from poverty freedom vs. for autonomous individuals to make choices). A significant, or teleological, move toward to social engineering suggests ...