In cybersecurity, what does "social engineering" refer to?

Social engineering refers to the psychological manipulation of individuals into performing actions or divulging confidential information that they would not typically do. This tactic exploits human emotions such as fear, trust, urgency, or curiosity to deceive individuals. For example, an attacker might impersonate a legitimate authority figure or a trusted colleague to trick someone into providing sensitive information, such as passwords or personal identifiers.

In contrast, creating strong passwords focuses on the technical aspects of cybersecurity, helping to protect accounts from unauthorized access rather than directly manipulating individuals. Implementing firewall rules and disabling security systems pertain to technical measures taken to secure networks and devices against threats, which are not related to the human-centric aspect of social engineering.