27. Social Engineering Awareness
27.1 What Social Engineering Is and Why It Works
In short: Social engineering is manipulating people into giving up information or access – no exploit needed, just human nature.
Social engineering is manipulating people into giving up information or access – no exploit needed, just human nature. Attacker technical suraksha baju la sarun thet mansala target karto.
It works because attackers push psychological buttons:
| Trigger | How it is used |
|---|---|
| Authority | "I am calling from the bank / your manager / income tax." |
| Urgency / fear | "Your account will be blocked in 10 minutes!" |
| Greed / reward | "You won ₹10,00,000 – click to claim." |
| Trust / familiarity | A message that looks like it is from a friend or a known company |
| Helpfulness | "I am new here, can you just let me in / share the OTP?" |
| Curiosity | A USB drive labelled "Salary details" left in the office |
Ravindra Bagale's Tip
Remember: no genuine bank, company or government office will ever ask for your OTP, password or PIN over the phone. If anyone asks for it, it is 100% fraud – no matter how "official" it seems. Make sure you teach this one rule to your family.
Ravindra Bagale's Tip – मराठी
लक्षात ठेवा: कोणतीही खरी bank, company किंवा government तुमचा OTP, password किंवा PIN phone वर कधीही विचारत नाही. कोणी हे विचारले म्हणजे तो 100% fraud आहे – कितीही "official" वाटला तरी. हा एक नियम तुमच्या कुटुंबाला आवर्जून शिकवा.
Ravindra Bagale's Tip – हिंदी
याद रखो: कोई भी असली bank, company या government आपका OTP, password या PIN phone पर कभी नहीं पूछती. कोई यह पूछे तो वह 100% fraud है – चाहे कितना भी "official" लगे. यह एक नियम अपने परिवार को ज़रूर सिखाओ.
Practice task
In your notes, list three times you or someone you know got a suspicious call or message. For each, write which psychological trigger (authority, urgency, greed...) the attacker used.