Confessions of a CIA Spy: The Art of Human Hacking by Peter Warmka

Confessions of a CIA Spy: The Art of Human Hacking by Peter Warmka

Author:Peter Warmka [Warmka, Peter]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2021-02-14T05:00:00+00:00


➢ Telephone Susan Catherwood and comment that during a recent conversation with ACIP President Doug Frey, he mentioned the name of her company.

➢ Telephone Susan Catherwood and comment that she was recommended by the secretary of ACIP.

➢ Call Susan Catherwood and comment that your online research regarding the industry indicated that she was highly recommended as an expert in her field. In fact, her name even surfaced several months ago when speaking with an (unidentified) member of ACIP.

While none of these referrals are genuine, they would likely be accepted and facilitate a conversation with Susan. Unless she became very suspicious of the social engineer’s demeanor or proposition, Susan is unlikely to attempt to verify the referral. She automatically trusts the social engineer’s explanation regarding the source of the referral.

As previously mentioned in Chapter 2, social engineers will always identify the universities from which potential targets have graduated. Many people feel a strong bond with their alma mater, and it can be a great ploy for initiating contact.

Leveraging well-formulated pretexts or referrals from trusted parties is great for obtaining the initial meeting with a target. After that, the social engineer must use their interpersonal skills to build additional trust. Once in the target’s presence, it was always important for me to greet them with a firm handshake, a warm smile and periodic direct eye contact. I needed to connect on a human level, quickly learning about what was important to them and then relating a personal anecdote, whether genuine or contrived, that would serve to create a common bond and lead to rapport. I found incorporating humor was always beneficial as it served to put them at ease and lower their guard. Being able to speak in their native language and discuss current events of interest was always an added plus.

While I spent considerable time preparing and rehearsing my cover pretext in advance of an initial encounter, it was never foolproof. That said, I was amazed at how frequently people would dismiss something that may have surfaced during our interaction that could have called into question my legitimacy. Perhaps it was a lack of knowledge in specific industry terminology or an inability to adequately address a question posed. While it might appear strange to the target when it occurs, they frequently rationalize it as only a minor inkling that something is not quite right. Ultimately, they want to trust you and will do everything they can to justify it.

Social engineers use a variety of techniques to exploit their victims’ trust and pretend to be someone other than themselves. Without trying to verify, these victims readily accept what they see, read and hear. Only afterwards do they lament that they were so easily deceived. Unfortunately, the price to pay for that lesson is typically millions of dollars in financial losses for their organization, or their own personal financial ruin.

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