Vishing | Security |IAS Current Affairs

Vishing

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Context:

The government released a circular warning its employees of a sophisticated cybercrime— vishing.

Vishing:

It is a short for voice+phishing.
It’s a technique wherein a threat actor calls the victim over the phone and tries to trick her into clicking on malicious files or emails, which can then take one to a legitimate-looking website asking her to share personal information.
In other cases, the attacker can ask for sensitive information from the victim.
The caller might appear as the manager or colleague of the victim, asking her to share sensitive information, at times using urgency as the tactic.
Artificial intelligence aids the attacker to imitate the voice and mannerisms to such an extent, making it easier to trick the victim.

Cyber attacks:

https://www.iasgyan.in/daily-current-affairs/cyber-attacks

Source:

PRACTICE QUESTION

Q) Consider the following statements about the

Vishing is a form of phishing conducted over the telephone.
Vishing attacks typically involve fraudsters pretending to be representatives from legitimate organizations.
Vishing attacks can be prevented by using two-factor authentication.

Which of the above statements is/are correct?

a) 1 only
b) 1 and 2 only
c) 2 and 3 only
d) 1, 2, and 3

Answer: b)

Explanation:

Vishing, a combination of "voice" and "phishing," refers to fraudulent practices conducted over the phone to trick individuals into revealing personal information.

Vishing attacks often involve fraudsters pretending to be from legitimate organizations, such as banks or government agencies, to gain the trust of the victim.

While two-factor authentication (2FA) is an important security measure, it is primarily used to secure online accounts. Vishing prevention relies more on awareness and skepticism of unsolicited phone calls rather than 2FA.