Mailfence - Get your free and secure email.
4.1 based on 177 user reviews
Quid pro quo attacks are characterized by an “ equitable ” exchange. Literally, the term means “ something in exchange for something .” This notion of exchange is crucial, because humans bolivia whatsapp number data 5 million obey the psychological principle of reciprocity . This means that every time someone gives us something or does us a favor, we feel obligated to return this favor.
In the case of quid pro quo attacks, the benefits or advantages promised in exchange for information are usually a service (when the benefit is a good, then it is called a baiting attack ).
Let's say you are contacted by an IT employee who offers to perform an audit on your PC to remove potential viruses that could affect your computer's performance. But for this, he needs your login and password. It all sounds very natural! You give him the information without further discussion : after all, you have been complaining for months about how slow your computer is. The problem is that this exchange of good will might not be beneficial, and you may have just fallen into the trap of a quid pro quo attack.
Quid pro quo attacks are based on manipulation and abuse of trust . They therefore fall into the category of social engineering techniques , such as phishing attacks (including spear phishing and whaling ), baiting or pretexting .
What is the difference between quid pro quo and pretexting?
Pretexting is also a type of social engineering. But it relies on a very elaborate scenario (a good pretext) to obtain sensitive information from the victim. Often, this scenario involves the intervention of people with a specific authority (managers, technicians, police officers, etc.) and/or implies a certain urgency to force the victim to act quickly and without thinking. For example, hackers claim that they need to obtain some kind of information to confirm the victim's identity.
This scenario is more elaborate than the quid pro quo attack case, and unlike it, it is not based on an exchange.
What is the difference between quid pro quo and baiting?
Like baiting , quid pro quo attacks are social engineering techniques. Both of these cyberthreats rely on psychological manipulation and building trust to obtain sensitive information from an unsuspecting victim. In quid pro quo attacks, however, the hacker offers a service to his or her victim in exchange for sensitive information. In baiting, the victim is “baited” with an irresistible offer – a gift or cash reward, for example.
Additionally, quid pro quo attacks are usually simpler than baiting attacks. They don't require much preparation or sophisticated tools.