social engineering

American  

[soh-shuhl en-juh-neer-ing] / ˈsoʊ ʃəl ˌɛn dʒəˈnɪər ɪŋ /

noun

1. Political Science. the manipulation of social beliefs and behaviors by public or private entities through legislation, policy, and investment.

2. a technique that uses psychological manipulation, fraud, or dishonesty to force people to disclose private personal or corporate information, or to take a particular action.

   Hackers are using social engineering to perpetrate phishing scams.

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social engineering British  

noun

1. the manipulation of the social position and function of individuals in order to manage change in a society

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Other Word Forms

• social engineer
  noun

Etymology

Origin of social engineering

First recorded in 1895–1900

Example Sentences

Earlier this month, North Korean hackers drained roughly $285 million from Drift Protocol after a monthslong social engineering campaign.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 29, 2026

"Fraudsters are using increasingly sophisticated social engineering tactics to deceive customers, often impersonating trusted institutions to gain access to information and account," the company said.

From BBC • Mar. 16, 2026

So far, the most common use of AI for hacking has been social engineering.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 5, 2026

The ramifications of the lost data could leave Americans susceptible to blackmail, coercion, social engineering or impersonation because the Social Security Administration has so much private and personal data, Borges said.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 4, 2026

Anthrax spent a few weeks social engineering various people, including utilities and relatives whose telephone numbers appeared on Bill's phone accounts, to piece together the details of his life.

From Underground by Dreyfus, Suelette