Unmasking the Social Engineer: The Human Element of Security

Learn to identify the social engineer by non-verbal behavior Unmasking the Social Engineer: The Human Element of Security focuses on combining the science of understanding non-verbal communications with the knowledge of how social engineers, scam artists and con men use these skills to build feelings of trust and rapport in their targets. The author helps readers understand how to identify and detect social engineers and scammers by analyzing their non-verbal behavior. Unmasking the Social Engineer shows how attacks work, explains nonverbal communications, and demonstrates with visuals the connection of non-verbal behavior to social engineering and scamming. Clearly combines both the practical and technical aspects of social engineering security Reveals the various dirty tricks that scammers use Pinpoints what to look for on the nonverbal side to detect the social engineer Sharing proven scientific methodology for reading, understanding, and deciphering non-verbal communications, Unmasking the Social Engineer arms readers with the knowledge needed to help protect their organizations.

Table of Contents:
Foreword xv Acknowledgments and Preface xvii Introduction xxi I Building the Foundation 1 1 What Is Nonverbal Communication? 3 The Different Aspects of Nonverbal Communication 8 Kinesics 9 Proxemics 13 Touch 14 Eye Contact 15 Olfactics 16 Adornment 17 Facial Expressions 19 How to Use This Information 20 Summary 23 2 What Is Social Engineering? 25 Information Gathering 28 Pretexting 29 Elicitation 30 Rapport 30 Influence/Manipulation 32 Framing 33 Nonverbal Communications 34 The Three Basic Forms of Social Engineering 34 Become Phishers of Men 35 When The Phone Is More Dangerous Than Malware 39 I Am Not the Social Engineer You Are Looking For 43 Using Social Engineering Skills 45 The Good 46 The Bad 47 The Ugly 48 Summary 48 II Decoding the Language of the Body 51 3 Understanding the Language of the Hands 53 Communicating with Your Hands 55 Origin 57 Coding 57 Usage 58 High-Confidence Hand Displays 66 Low-Confidence and Stress Hand Displays 75 Getting a Handle on the Hands 78 Summary 79 4 The Torso, Legs, and Feet 81 Legs and Feet 83 Torso and Arms 89 Summary 97 5 The Science Behind the Face 99 Just the FACS 103 What Is a Truth Wizard? 105 Emotions versus Feelings 108 Fear 109 Surprise 113 Sadness 116 Contempt 121 Disgust 125 Anger 128 Happiness 132 Perfect Practice Makes Perfect 136 Summary 137 6 Understanding Nonverbal Displays of Comfort and Discomfort 139 Neck and Face Pacifying 143 What to Watch For 144 Mouth Covers 146 What to Watch For 147 Lips 147 What to Watch For 151 Eye Blocking 153 What to Watch For 154 Self-Comforting and Head Tilts 154 What to Watch For 157 Summary 158 III Deciphering the Science 159 7 The Human Emotional Processor 161 Introducing the Amygdala 164 How the Amygdala Processes Information 165 Hijacking the Amygdala 167 Human See, Human Do 169 Reading Other People’s Expressions 170 Your Own Emotional Content 171 Nonverbal Social Proof 171 Using Amygdala Hijacking as a Social Engineer 172 Summary 174 8 The Nonverbal Side of Elicitation 177 Artificial Time Constraints 181 Sympathy/Assistance Themes 182 Ego Suspension 184 Ask How, When, and Why Questions 186 Conversational Signals 187 Action Unit 1: Inner Brow Raiser 188 Action Unit 2: Outer Brow Raiser 188 Action Unit 4: Brow Lowerer 189 Conversational Signals of Emotions 190 Breaking Down Conversational Signals 191 Batons 191 Underliner r 192 Punctuation 192 Question Mark 193 Word Search 193 Nonverbal Conversational Signals 193 Conversational Signals as a Social Engineer 195 Summary 196 IV Putting It All Together 197 9 Nonverbal Communication and the Social Engineer Human Being 199 Applying This Information as a Professional Social Engineer 202 Using This Book to Defend 206 Becoming a Critical Thinker 207 Summary 210 Index 213

About the Author :
CHRISTOPHER HADNAGY is author of the best-selling book, Social Engineering: The Art of Human Hacking and professional social engineer who works with Fortune 500 companies. DR. PAUL EKMAN, PH.D., is the world’s foremost expert on facial expressions and professor emeritus of psychology at the University of California San Francisco School of Medicine. Dr. Ekman’s pioneering work in the field of nonverbal communication and visual lie detection was the inspiration behind the hit TV series Lie to Me, for which he acted as a scientific consultant. Dr. Ekman has also served as an advisor to police departments and anti-terrorism groups within the United States government, and is the author 13 books, including Telling Lies and Emotions Revealed.