Digital Deception is all about lying in the Digital age

Digital deception - while it can be associated with lying, it encompasses a broader scope of misleading or manipulative actions in the digital realm.

Deepfakes, hyper-realistic manipulated videos, cloning and fabricated news websites are the latest tools in the cyber crook’s arsenal, targeting unsuspecting individuals with promises of quick wealth and leveraging the credibility of celebrities and industry leaders.

Imagine your favourite actor endorsing a dubious investment opportunity or a renowned athlete promoting a seemingly lucrative betting app. The misuse of these figures’ identities has prompted public denials from the individuals themselves. Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani publicly addressed the issue, debunking the false claims circulating on social media about his involvement in a crypto project.

Digital Deception refers to the intentional manipulation of information or technology to mislead, deceive, or harm individuals or organizations in a digital context. This includes, but is not limited to, outright lying, but extends to strategies like:

· Phishing: Creating fake websites or emails to trick users into revealing personal information.

· Deepfakes: Using artificial intelligence to create convincing but fabricated videos or audio recordings.

· Social engineering: Manipulating people through psychological tactics to gain access to information or resources.

· Disinformation and misinformation: Spreading false or misleading information, whether intentionally or unintentionally.

The key point is that Digital Deception goes beyond simple lying and encompasses a variety of tactics designed to exploit the vulnerabilities of digital environments and human psychology.

Deception technology is a category of cybersecurity solutions that detect threats early with low rates of false positives. The technology deploys realistic decoys (e.g., domains, databases, directories, servers, apps, files, credentials, breadcrumbs) in a network alongside real assets to act as lures.

The moment an attacker interacts with a decoy, the technology begins gathering intel that it uses to generate high-fidelity alerts that reduce dwell time and speed up incident response.

A recent survey uncovers, large digital tech conglomerates have greatly profited with the evolution of social media. They continue to employ targeted algorithms that micro-target individuals, gathering personal and confidential data, including habits, behaviours and reactions.

No matter how good your perimeter defenses are, there is always a chance, cybercriminals will infiltrate your network.