Question

An attempt to acquire sensitive information such as usernames, passwords, and credit card details (and sometimes, indirectly, money) by masquerading as a trustworthy entity in an electronic communication – is known as

• A. Salami Attacks
• B. Phishing
• C. Data diddling:
• D. Forgery

Hint:

For cybercrimes, learn the specific definitions. Phishing = masquerading to get sensitive info. Vishing = phishing via voice calls. Smishing = phishing via SMS. Data Diddling = unauthorized data alteration. Salami Slicing = stealing tiny amounts from many sources.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is B

The scenario in the question is a well known form of online fraud built entirely around deception, not technical manipulation of records or documents.

1. Salami Attacks: works by silently skimming tiny amounts across many transactions, it has nothing to do with pretending to be a trusted party.
2. Phishing: the attacker sets up a fake but convincing identity, usually via email or a cloned website, to lure the victim into entering login details, passwords, or card numbers, which is exactly what the question describes.
3. Data diddling: concerns changing data at the point of entry into a system, an internal manipulation rather than an external deception aimed at a victim.
4. Forgery: means producing or altering a document dishonestly, which is a different offence from tricking someone into giving up their own credentials.

The correct answer is Phishing.

Answer 2

To answer this correctly, it helps to think about what each of these terms actually targets, since all four are cybercrime terms that sound similar but describe very different acts.

1. Salami Attacks: targets bulk transactions by shaving off negligible amounts repeatedly; the victim rarely notices any single deduction. There is no fake identity involved at any stage.
2. Phishing: targets the victim's trust. The word itself comes from "fishing", the attacker casts bait, usually a message or page that looks legitimate, and waits for the victim to bite by entering sensitive details like usernames, passwords, or card numbers. This is the only option built around impersonating a trustworthy entity to extract information.
3. Data diddling: targets the data itself at the entry stage, before it even reaches processing, so it is really a form of input manipulation rather than a social engineering trick played on a person.
4. Forgery: targets documents or records, producing or changing them fraudulently, which is unrelated to luring someone into disclosing their own credentials online.

Since the question is describing deception through impersonation to steal sensitive data, the answer has to be Phishing.