Influence Techniques in Phishing Attacks: An Examination of Vulnerability and Resistance

被引:112
|
作者
Wright, Ryan T. [1 ]
Jensen, Matthew L. [2 ]
Thatcher, Jason Bennett [3 ]
Dinger, Michael [4 ]
Marett, Kent [5 ]
机构
[1] Univ Massachusetts, Isenberg Sch Management, Amherst, MA 01003 USA
[2] Univ Oklahoma, Ctr Appl Social Res, Div MIS, Norman, OK 73019 USA
[3] Clemson Univ, Dept Management, Social Analyt Inst, Clemson, SC 29634 USA
[4] Univ South Carolina Upstate, Johnson Coll Business & Econ, Spartanburg, SC 29306 USA
[5] Mississippi State Univ, Coll Business, Dept Management & Informat Syst, Mississippi State, MS 39762 USA
关键词
persuasion theory; influence techniques; motivation theory; self-determination; perceived locus of causality; social engineering; online deception; mediated deception; deception; field experiments; SELF-DETERMINATION THEORY; INTRINSIC MOTIVATION; INTERPERSONAL DECEPTION; E-COMMERCE; PERSUASION; INOCULATION; MODEL; COMMUNICATION; QUALITY; LOGIT;
D O I
10.1287/isre.2014.0522
中图分类号
G25 [图书馆学、图书馆事业]; G35 [情报学、情报工作];
学科分类号
1205 ; 120501 ;
摘要
Phishing is a major threat to individuals and organizations. Along with billions of dollars lost annually, phishing attacks have led to significant data breaches, loss of corporate secrets, and espionage. Despite the significant threat, potential phishing targets have little theoretical or practical guidance on which phishing tactics are most dangerous and require heightened caution. The current study extends persuasion and motivation theory to postulate why certain influence techniques are especially dangerous when used in phishing attacks. We evaluated our hypotheses using a large field experiment that involved sending phishing messages to more than 2,600 participants. Results indicated a disparity in levels of danger presented by different influence techniques used in phishing attacks. Specifically, participants were less vulnerable to phishing influence techniques that relied on fictitious prior shared experience and were more vulnerable to techniques offering a high level of self-determination. By extending persuasion and motivation theory to explain the relative efficacy of phishers' influence techniques, this work clarifies significant vulnerabilities and lays the foundation for individuals and organizations to combat phishing through awareness and training efforts.
引用
收藏
页码:385 / 400
页数:16
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