Humans have a natural tendency to trust our senses — if we can see, hear, or feel something firsthand, we consider it to be real. But not everything is as it seems, and there are malicious individuals who will expertly twist these senses to deceive you.

You may be thinking, I'm not gullible, I wouldn't fall for a scam. Nevertheless, if you find yourself in the sights of someone with experience in the form of manipulation known as social engineering, you may become a victim before you even realize what happened. These techniques are powerful and have proven highly effective, even against high-security targets.

The following infographic from Veracode explains the power of social engineering, and how it can be used to “hack the mind” without any knowledge of coding or other technical skills. These attacks happen through simple emails, phone calls, or even face-to-face interactions. Click here to download a full-size version of this infographic.

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For a more detailed explanation of social engineering techniques and the risks they pose, check out our previous article, “Social Engineering: 5 Manipulation Techniques”.

Written by Patrick McCarthy