🔓 Introduction: Into the Heart of Manipulation

The recent security breach still fresh, Jordan, our vigilant CISO, fortifies the company’s human firewall against social engineering threats. Despite increased awareness, the enemy adapts, launching a more insidious form of attack targeting the company’s call center staff. A routine day turns precarious when a savvy call center agent, Alex, receives a seemingly innocuous call that quickly escalates into a masterclass of manipulation.

🔍 Act 1: The Bait

Alex, known for her meticulous adherence to protocol, answers a call from a smooth-talking individual claiming to be from the company’s IT department. The caller, Mike, reports a fictitious but plausible system outage that requires immediate attention. He skillfully weaves a sense of urgency, pressuring Alex to bypass standard verification processes. As Mike guides her towards revealing login credentials, Alex’s intuition signals a red flag, prompting her to alert Jordan.

🕵️ Act 2: Unraveling the Scheme

Jordan, together with the MSSP team, initiates a rapid investigation to trace the call’s origin. They discover that “Mike” is not an employee but a skilled social engineer working for the competition. Jordan conducts an emergency training session, transforming the close call into a case study. The session underscores the subtlety of social engineering and reinforces the critical need for vigilance at all levels of communication within the company.

🛠 Act 3: Fortifying Human Defenses

Realizing that technology alone cannot shield against human-centric attacks, Jordan launches an anti-social engineering campaign:

Simulation drills of phishing and vishing attacks are scheduled to train employees in identifying and responding to manipulation.

A robust protocol for telephonic interactions is established, with a two-factor authentication process for phone-based requests.

A confidential hotline is set up, allowing employees to report suspicious interactions without fear of reprisal.

Rewards for ‘catching’ simulated attacks are introduced to encourage engagement and sharpen defensive instincts.

🔜 Teaser for Episode 21: “Syncing with Danger”

The security landscape within the company takes a treacherous turn when an internal employee’s personal email is compromised due to its sync with the cloud, unleashing a chain reaction that endangers the entire work network.