social engineering

noun

1
: management of human beings in accordance with their place and function in society : applied social science
2
: social methods (such as phishing) that are used to obtain personal or confidential information which can then be used illicitly
The previously noted trend of switching from social engineering to hacking methods in attacks on organizations strengthened …San Fernando Valley (California) Business Journal
social engineer noun
plural social engineers

Examples of social engineering in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web One example is the latest social engineering tactic reported by the Sekoia threat detection and research team: bypassing web browser protections such as Google Safe Browsing by tricking victims into opening fake Google Meet conference pages that install infostealer malware. Davey Winder, Forbes, 18 Oct. 2024 Deer Park Community City School District warned parents about a phishing scam at the start of this school year, and last year West Clermont School District lost $1.7 million in a social engineering scam. Madeline Mitchell, The Enquirer, 28 Sep. 2024 With a growing number of threats taking the form of phishing or social engineering attacks, chatbots will play a part by simulating phishing attacks and teaching us how to spot and avoid attempts to trick us into becoming victims. Bernard Marr, Forbes, 24 Sep. 2024 One common technique is social engineering attacks. Ilia Sotnikov, Forbes, 20 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for social engineering 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'social engineering.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1899, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of social engineering was in 1899

Dictionary Entries Near social engineering

Cite this Entry

“Social engineering.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/social%20engineering. Accessed 4 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

social engineering

noun
1
: management of human beings in accordance with their place and function in society : applied social science
2
: social methods (such as phishing) that are used to obtain personal or confidential information which can then be used illicitly
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!