Baiting is a type of social engineering attack in which the victim is deceived into installing harmful software onto their devices. The usual sources of said software are usually physical data storage objects such as USB sticks and CDs. The unsuspecting user will insert either into their devices, and an automatic installation will ensue.
Baiting can also happen in digital formats. Perhaps you get an email that appears authentic on the surface, or it’s an ad promising some outlandish rewards — clicking either will result in the same result as with the CDs and USBs.
How to prevent baiting
- Avoid clicking on any links, ads, or attachments that you can accurately pinpoint their origins.
- Use a reliable VPN’s threat protection feature to carry out scans on any and every downloaded file.
