Why Hackers Love Your Social Media - and How to Stop Them

1. Profiling Targets for Spear Phishing

Spear phishing is a highly targeted form of phishing where attackers tailor their messages to specific individuals or organizations. OSINT plays a critical role in this process.

– Web & Social Media Scraping: Attackers scour platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to gather personal details such as job titles, relationships, and interests.

– Company Websites: Information about employees, organizational structure, and even email formats can be extracted from corporate sites.

– Public Records: Data from government databases, such as business registrations or property records, can provide additional context.

With this information, attackers can craft emails that appear to come from a trusted colleague, boss, or business partner, increasing the likelihood of success.

2. Creating Convincing Lures

Phishing emails often rely on urgency or curiosity to trick victims into clicking malicious links or downloading attachments. OSINT helps attackers create lures that are highly relevant to their targets.

– Current Events: Attackers monitor news and social media to exploit trending topics, such as a recent data breach or insurance review you company underwent recently.

– Industry-Specific Jargon: By researching a target’s industry, attackers can use technical terms and insider knowledge to make their emails seem legitimate.

– Personalized Content:

Details like a possible victim’s recent vacation (gathered from social media) can be used to craft believable scenarios. Attackers analyze the context of their targets – such as job roles, hobbies, or even recent life events – to create emails that feel relevant and urgent. For example, a phishing email might reference a recent conference the victim attended or a project they’re working on, making the message appear legitimate and increasing the likelihood of success.

3. Spoofing Identities and Domains

OSINT helps attackers impersonate trusted entities with alarming accuracy.

– Email Spoofing: By analyzing email patterns (e.g., firstname.lastname@company.com), attackers can create fake addresses that look genuine.

– Domain Cloning: Attackers use OSINT to identify legitimate domains and create lookalike versions (e.g., “company-security.com” instead of “company.com”).

– Fake Social Media Profiles: Attackers may create fake profiles of executives or colleagues to establish trust before launching an attack. Studies have shown that LinkedIn is one of the most abused platforms for such scams, with a 2023 report revealing that 52% of professionals have encountered fake profiles, and 1 in 5 phishing attempts originate from social media platforms like LinkedIn. These fake profiles are often used to build rapport with targets before delivering malicious links or requests.

4. Exploiting Weaknesses in Security Posture

OSINT can reveal vulnerabilities in an organization’s security practices, making it easier for attackers to bypass defenses.

– Employee Information: Publicly available data can reveal which employees have access to sensitive systems.

– Third-Party Vendors: Attackers may target less-secure vendors or partners as a backdoor into an organization.

– Password Resets: Personal details like pet names or birthdays (often shared on social media) can be used to guess security questions to hack passwords.