Examkin

Question

Difficulty: EasySocial Engineering Attacks and Vectors

A sales manager receives a phone call from an individual claiming to be an internal IT technician conducting an audit of remote working software. The caller convinces the manager to reveal their account security answers by presenting a fabricated scenario of mandatory system compliance. Which of the following social engineering techniques did the caller perform?

  1. PretextingAnswer
  2. B
    Watering hole attack
  3. C
    Baiting
  4. D
    Shoulder surfing

Answer

The caller performed pretexting by fabricating a believable scenario to manipulate the user into revealing sensitive account security answers.
Pretexting occurs when an attacker invents a scenario (the pretext) to trick a target into releasing confidential data or performing restricted actions. Impersonating an internal technician carrying out an audit is a classic form of pretexting.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the scenario details
The attacker established a false identity (IT technician) and constructed a believable story (audit of remote working software) to build trust.
Identifying the primary mechanism of psychological manipulation clarifies the attack type.
2
Evaluate the social engineering definitions
Creating an elaborate fake backstory or pretext to manipulate a target into providing confidential information matches the definition of pretexting.
Matching attacker tactics to standardized taxonomy isolates the correct term.

Key Concept

Pretexting in Social Engineering
Rate this question

Topics

Social Engineering Attacks and Vectors

More questions from this topic