Episode Details

Most people think social engineering started with cybersecurity. But the practice of manipulating people to gain access or information is as old as civilization itself. In this episode, we trace the actual lineage — from the Trojan Horse to the Cambridge Five spy ring, from Renaissance con artists to the CIA's Simple Sabotage Field Manual. We break down the core psychological vulnerabilities (authority, urgency, social proof) and the techniques (pretexting, baiting, tailgating) that predate digital technology by centuries. If you think social engineering is just phishing emails, this history will change how you see human nature as an attack surface.