Social Engineering: The Dark Side of Psychology?

When we hear the word engineering we may imagine, among other things, men with helmets and blueprints (due to engineering civil), extravagant mathematical calculations or computer geniuses as we see them in the films.

However, there is another kind of engineering, one so subtle that it can even generate great changes: the social engineering.

Social engineering: defining the concept

It may sound like science fiction but, in fact, social engineering exists and is used by many, from hackers to governments, and there begins one of the main kernels: what do we mean by the term social engineering?

The term has a long history, but we can summarize it by saying that there are basically two ways of understanding this concept. The first, taken from the field of computing, to be precise from hackers; and the second, taken from political science.

For hackers or people dedicated to computer security in general, social engineering is the act of manipulating a person through psychological techniques and social skills to meet specific goals (Sandoval, 2011) that in this area these goals normally refer to obtaining and information or access to system.

On the other hand, political science has understood social engineering as any program dedicated to influencing the attitudes, relationships and actions of society so that it adopts the vision in question that it wants to implement.

The role of Psychology in social engineering

The psychology plays an important role in both conceptions of social engineering, since it is from the use of psychological techniques that their implementation is made possible.

Social engineering techniques

Some of the techniques are, in fact, quite simple and are based on behaviors that are connatural to the human person since they have a social and evolutionary function that predisposes us to themselves.

For example, applied at the individual level as hackers do, Kevin Mitnick (2002), an expert on the subject, mentions at least four basic and psychological principles that make a social engineering attack prone. These principles are:

• We all want to help: It is something cultural and it is deeply rooted. Helping is one of the first things that children are taught, in the same way, it is a social principle in both the West and the East.

• The first move towards the other is one of trust: Here more than one could disagree since not all people always generate the same trust and many factors come into play; However, in principle it is correct since from a young age we learn to trust others. It is part of our evolution and nature (NatGeo, 2015).

• We avoid saying 'No': Although it is true that we do not always say yes to everything, a great majority of people find it difficult to say no. Everything will depend on the way in which the information is requested and social engineers are skilled in finding this way.

• We all like to be praised: The search for recognition exists in human nature and being praised is a good way to satisfy this necessity (Mankeliunas, 1996), it is not surprising that it can be used to manipulate or for others to manipulate us.

The behaviorist theory and experimental psychology have given us many useful techniques for both modifying and controlling behavior (remembering that the behavioral definition of psychology includes both ends)

Applying social engineering principles thanks to marketing

However, is it applicable on a social level? The answer is Yes. Do not forget that marketing and advertising does it all the time. In fact, social engineering -as it is understood in political science- arises in the business field with J. C. van Marken and from there he extrapolated to political science. Propaganda, language manipulation, support in voices of authority (such as politicians, scientists, academics) are just some of the means used.

Noam chomskymentions some manipulation techniques among which are the strategy of gradualism, use the emotional aspect in arguments, create problems and then offer solutions, reinforce self-blame, the strategy of deferring a decision among others. Examples of its use throughout history have been totalitarian governments (Nazism, fascism, communism, for example) but the same occurs in democracies and with greater ease.

Social experiments

As a social entity that is the human being, in principle it seeks not to be different because to be different is to be excluded (need for affiliation). This psychological fact is the one that is used fundamentally to atomize a society into more controllable and at the same time more manipulable groups. Stanley milgramFor example, he demonstrated with his experiment how manipulable people are who, by someone with "authority", when they managed to do that during the experiment Participants will be instructed to increase the power in the electrical impulse that they used to indicate an error to an actor whom they did not see but heard their Screams.

On the other hand, Solomon asch He demonstrated that the influence of others can lead people to act on their own opinion and values ​​while Philip Zimbardo revealed how the adoption of roles changes people's behavior. It is also known that when manipulating language, the perception that one has about a phenomenon X is manipulated (as is done in the cognitive behavioral therapy). If this is repeated by the media over and over again, the acceptance of this phenomenon by the masses is made easier.

These are just a few examples of experiments that support social engineering techniques to massive scale by institutions, non-governmental organizations, political parties and governments. Propaganda plays an important role in the development of social engineering remembering that it is with the knowledge of being human, its tendencies, its desires, its needs, its psychic mechanisms, its automatisms, as well as the knowledge of the Social psychology and analytical psychology that propaganda refines its techniques (Jaques Ellul).

Now, is social engineering negative?

From my point of view, the answer would be a not. At least not in itself. While it is true that social engineering has been used to implement an agenda that imposes a specific vision of the world (both in totalitarian and democratic systems), it is also it is true that it can be used to solve real problems, that is, it can be used for a good beyond political, economic or ideological pettiness.

If social engineering techniques can be used to end a relationship or obtain private information or impose a point of view or a new law previously contrary to popular sentiment, why could it not be used for contrary?

In this regard, the philosopher Karl Popper (1945), believed that in fact that was the correct way to use it. For him, the characteristic of social engineering was to solve social problems in a way analogous to how an engineer does so that there is greater production. On the other hand, there is a difference between the social engineering of democratic and totalitarian societies. In democratic societies, the solution is consensual and gradual, thus receiving more support. On the contrary, in totalitarian societies what you want is to solve all evils by imposing an ideal.

In conclusion, both psychology and other disciplines involved have much to offer and although it is true that social engineering tends to be held in a negative conceptIt is also true that it is necessary to solve many problems both individually and socially, which is why training in this aspect seems important to me.

Bibliographic references:

• Anonymous. Manipulation techniques used by the mass media (online) 2012. Consultation date: February 1, 2016. Available in: http://ssociologos.com/2012/08/08/tecnicas-de-manipulacion-utilizadas-por-los-medios-masivos/
• Fierro, A. Social engineering and psychology (online) 1982. Consultation date: February 1, 2016. Available in: http://elpais.com/diario/1982/04/15/sociedad/387669601_850215.html
• Kolber, J. (Producer) (2013) Mental Games [Television series] United States. National Geographic
• Mitnick, K. (2002) The art of deception. Mexico D. F.: John Wiley & Sons
• Pluss, D. Psychosocial manipulation (online) 2013. Consultation date: February 1, 2016. Available in: http://es.slideshare.net/dappluss/manipulacion-psicosocial-daniel-pluss
• Popper, K. (1945) The open society and its enemies. Mexico D. F.: Paidós
• [Potatool] (2015 May 23) 2.-Social engineering, we think or they think us. Recovered from https://www.youtube.com/watch? v = 1Gj7bCwXsEI
• Comunicar Magazine. Noam Chomsky and the ten strategies of media manipulation (line) Date consulted: February 1, 2016. Available in: http://www.revistacomunicar.com/pdf/noam-chomsky-la-manipulacion.pdf
• Rodríguez, J. [Juan Carlos Rodríguez] (2014 July 25) Introduction to social engineering. Retrieved from https: // www.youtube.com/watch? v = eMJLK8aJMbU
• Sandoval, E. Social Engineering: Corrupting the Human Mind (online) 2011. Consultation date: February 1, 2016.