social engineering

noun

1

: management of human beings in accordance with their place and function in society : applied social science

2

: social methods (such as phishing) that are used to obtain personal or confidential information which can then be used illicitly

The previously noted trend of switching from social engineering to hacking methods in attacks on organizations strengthened …

—San Fernando Valley (California) Business Journal

social engineer noun

plural social engineers

Examples of social engineering in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Sure, lots of threats are out there, everything from historic DDoS attacks to good old social engineering. —PC Magazine, 24 Oct. 2025

If the impersonators do not currently have the customer's PIN, the accomplice or impersonator will use social engineering techniques to obtain this from the customer. —Susan Tompor, USA Today, 8 Oct. 2025

If the impersonators do not currently have the customer's PIN, the accomplice or impersonator will use social engineering techniques to obtain this from the customer. —Susan Tompor, Freep.com, 2 Oct. 2025

Consistent with many recent data breaches, this particular data breach was accomplished through social engineering tactics used by cybercriminals to gain access to information through a customer relationship management (CRM) system use by Allianz. —Steve Weisman, Forbes.com, 6 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1899, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for social engineering

• bioengineering
• adhering
• appearing
• careering
• cohering
• endearing
• inhering
• prehearing
• rehearing
• veneering
• cheering
• clearing

Kids Definition

social engineering

noun

1

: management of human beings in accordance with their place and function in society : applied social science

2

: social methods (such as phishing) that are used to obtain personal or confidential information which can then be used illicitly