Social engineering is a new form of threats that are being released upon individuals and businesses. Social engineering threats are played out through your social media platform – Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and others.

Chances are you have heard of social engineering but may not be fully aware of what it is, how it works and how you could be impacted. To effect this scam, a hacker finds ways to intimidate people to get them to give up personal information. Many people think they may not be gullible enough to be taken in by the scam, but the hackers are so sophisticated that even the best of us can be taken in.

Here are some social engineering scams you have probably heard of:

1. The “Nigerian prince” asking for money to help his kingdom. Or the email scam that purports to be from a relative of yours who is stuck in a foreign country and needs your help to get home or even an email from a relative who says he or she is in jail and needs your help to ge released.
2. The scammers want you to make a decision RIGHT NOW! They play on your sense of urgency and make it seem like an emergency. They don’t want you to have the chance to call a friend – that is how they get access to your bank account or other personal information.

What Is Social Engineering? 7 Explanations For Biz

How can you protect yourself? Here are a few ways:

1. Never, never, never give out your password. There is never a reason for doing this.
2. Don’t click any links. Your bank will not email you to tell you this is a problem with your account. If they do, and it looks legit, you need to go to the bank link (on your own) and look into your account.
3. Don’t email the scammer or potential scammer back. Do not engage with them. If you think a relative is in trouble, call them.
4. Don’t ever open an attachment.
5. Never give out your Social Security number or bank account numbers or any personal information.

Common sense truly rules the day when it comes to protecting your identity and your passwords. If you have any questions about passwords, password protection or protecting your business from ransomware, give us a call today.

DM us or schedule an appointment to talk with our President Seth Melendez. Protect your company’s most valuable asset – its data.

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