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Vishing (voice phishing)

1 min read
Pronunciation
[vish-ing]
Analogy
Like a phone scam where the caller pretends to be your bank’s fraud department and convinces you to hand over your account credentials.
Definition
A social engineering attack conducted via voice calls, where attackers impersonate trusted entities to deceive victims into revealing sensitive information or transferring funds.
Key Points Intro
Vishing exploits trust in voice communication to bypass technical defenses.
Key Points

Caller ID spoofing: masks attack origin as legitimate number

Pretexting: builds believable scenarios to solicit information

Urgency: uses time pressure to prevent verification

Multi-channel: can be combined with phishing or SMiShing

Example
An attacker calls a crypto investor claiming their wallet was compromised and asks for the 2FA code to “secure” funds, then drains the wallet using the code.
Technical Deep Dive
VoIP platforms facilitate mass vishing campaigns via softphones and automated dialers. Attackers use interactive voice response (IVR) spoofing and pre-recorded prompts. Defensive solutions employ STIR/SHAKEN for caller authentication and anomaly detection on call patterns.
Security Warning
Never share OTPs, 2FA codes, or private keys over the phone; independently verify caller identity before compliance.
Caveat
Voice deepfake technology is making vishing attacks more convincing and harder to detect.
Related Terms
Phishing
Social Engineering

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