Social Engineering : The Art of Human Hacking

by Hadnagy, Christopher; Wilson, Paul

• ISBN13: 9780470639535
• ISBN10: 0470639539
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2010-12-21
• Publisher: Wiley

Summary

The first book to reveal and dissect the technical aspect of many social engineering maneuversFrom elicitation, pretexting, influence and manipulation all aspects of social engineering are picked apart, discussed and explained by using real world examples, personal experience and the science behind them to unraveled the mystery in social engineering.Kevin Mitnick-one of the most famous social engineers in the world-popularized the term "social engineering." He explained that it is much easier to trick someone into revealing a password for a system than to exert the effort of hacking into the system. Mitnick claims that this social engineering tactic was the single-most effective method in his arsenal. This indispensable book examines a variety of maneuvers that are aimed at deceiving unsuspecting victims, while it also addresses ways to prevent social engineering threats. Examines social engineering, the science of influencing a target to perform a desired task or divulge information Arms you with invaluable information about the many methods of trickery that hackers use in order to gather information with the intent of executing identity theft, fraud, or gaining computer system access Reveals vital steps for preventing social engineering threats Includes a direct URL to a free download of the world's premiere penetration-testing distribution, BackTrack 4 SE Edition - geared towards Social Engineering ToolsTools for Human Hacking does its part to prepare you against nefarious hackers-now you can do your part by putting to good use the critical information within its pages.

Author Biography

Christopher Hadnagy is the lead developer of www.social-engineer.org, the world's first social engineering framework. In more than 14 years of security and IT activity, he has partnered with the team at www.backtrack-linux.org and worked on a wide variety of security projects. He also serves as trainer and lead social engineer for Offensive Security's penetration testing team.

Table of Contents

Foreword	p. xiii
Preface and Acknowledgments	p. xvii
A Look into the World of Social Engineering	p. 1
Why This Book Is So Valuable	p. 3
Overview of Social Engineering	p. 9
Summary	p. 21
Information Gathering	p. 23
Gathering Information	p. 26
Sources for Information Gathering	p. 33
Communication Modeling	p. 43
The Power of Communication Models	p. 53
Eficitation	p. 55
What Is Elicitation?	p. 56
The Goals of Elicitation	p. 58
Mastering Elicitation	p. 74
Summary	p. 76
Pretexting: How to Become Anyone	p. 77
What Is Pretexting?	p. 78
The Principles and Planning Stages of Pretexting	p. 79
Successful Pretexting	p. 91
Summary	p. 99
Mind Tricks: Psychological Principles Used in Social Engineering	p. 101
Modes of Thinking
Microexpressions	p. 109
Neurolinguistic Programming (NLP)	p. 136
Interview and Interrogation	p. 143
Building Instant Rapport	p. 162
The Human Buffer Overflow	p. 172
Summary	p. 178
Influence: The Power of Persuasion	p. 181
The Five Fundamentals of Influence and Persuasion	p. 182
Influence Tactics	p. 187
Altering Reality: Framing	p. 215
Manipulation: Controlling Your Target	p. 233
Manipulation in Social Engineering	p. 248
Summary	p. 256
The Tools of the Social Engineer	p. 259
Physical Tools	p. 260
Online Information-Gathering Tools	p. 279
Summary	p. 297
Case Studies: Dissecting the Social Engineer	p. 299
Mitnick Case Study 1: Hacking the DMV	p. 300
Mitnick Case Study 2: Hacking the Social Security Administration	p. 306
Hadnagy Case Study 1: The Overconfident CEO	p. 310
Hadnagy Case Study 2: The Theme Park Scandal	p. 317
Top-Secret Case Study 1: Mission Not Impossible	p. 322
Top-Secret Case Study 2: Social Engineering a Hacker	p. 329
Why Case Studies Are Important	p. 337
Summary	p. 338
Prevention and Mitigation	p. 339
Learning to Identify Social Engineering Attacks	p. 340
Creating a Personal Security Awareness Culture	p. 341
Being Aware of the Value of the Information You Are Being Asked For	p. 344
Keeping Software Updated	p. 347
Developing Scripts	p. 348
Learning from Social Engineering Audits	p. 348
Concluding Remarks	p. 354
Summary	p. 361
Index	p. 363
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