What is Tailgating in Cyber Security? 5 Real-Life Examples

What is Tailgating in Cyber Security?

Tailgating in the context of cyber security is a form of social engineering attack. It is a type of attack where an intruder acquires access to a particular area or information that is off-limits to him or her by trailing an authorized person. This technique is not based on hacking skills but on the manipulation of trust and negligence of people. It can be severe and result in data leaks, loss of confidential information, or unauthorized access to important networks.

There are different ways through which tailgating can be defined. From a person standing right behind you to look at your computer screen to someone closely following you during the process of entering a password, these actions may seem quite innocent but they can cause severe security threats. It is a technique that combines the real and the virtual environments and exploits the slightest vulnerability in the security measures.

The dangers of tailgating attacks are high, given that a high percentage of unauthorized access events is linked to tailgating. This statistic demonstrates how easily an unauthorized person can gain access to restricted zones, which is a major concern.

Criminals use tailgating in which they follow a helpful employee or student who is holding the door open for someone like a visitor without a badge or someone in a uniform looking like a worker. At first glance, it may seem like a noble thing to do, and something that you would do without even giving it a second thought, but these are the very lapses that can harm the organization through data loss, financial loss through theft or property damage, and the loss of the organization’s image.

5 Examples of Tailgating in Cyber Security

When entering the sphere of cyber security, a person may have a question: “What is tailgating in cyber security?” Tailgating, which is usually ignored, is a serious threat. It is a technique where the intruders sneak into restricted areas by tailing the legitimate users. This section will explain five real-life cases of tailgating in cyber security to help the reader gain a better understanding of the topic.

Unauthorized Access to a Secure Building

Cyber security threats such as tailgating are a real menace to organizations. The most typical situation is the intrusion into a restricted area of a building or a structure. This is a situation where an intruder tailors an authorized person into a restricted area.

For example, suppose a person approaches another person who is entering a building and claims to be that person’s colleague and asks him or her to hold the door open for him or her. To make the target believe that the attacker is a fellow employee, the attacker may pretend to have forgotten his/her ID card. This type of attack also includes social engineering as the attacker tries to influence the victim.

Another example is when the attacker pretends to be a delivery man or a vendor. They wear the right attire in order not to arouse the suspicion of the occupants of the building and then proceed to ask to be allowed into the building to deliver some goods, documents, foods or any other items.

The effects of these tailgating attacks are severe and can be felt in the long run. Once inside, the attacker could plug in to the network connections or place devices that would enable him to attack the network at a later time. It is vital for organizations to spend money on technological protection measures and create the awareness of such social engineering attacks.

Piggybacking on a Network Connection

Piggybacking is a rather sneaky and dangerous phenomenon in the sphere of cyber security. It is a method through which people who are not supposed to access a certain system or area get into it through a loophole. The attacker exploits the credentials or authorization of an authorized user to overcome the security measures.

For example, there is a case where an intruder stays outside a particular building and follows an employee who has a card key to enter a specific door. This is a clear illustration of the physical piggybacking where one person carries the other as if the latter is a child. In the digital environment, an attacker can obtain the username and password of a user to get into a computer system or an application.

Piggybacking takes advantage of people’s desire to be helpful, for instance, when you allow someone to follow you through a door you have just opened. It uses a technique of exploiting the authorized users to inadvertently provide access. This method demonstrates the need to be cautious with access policies and not to allow unwanted systems or entry into the building.

Now, let us look at how the piggybacking process takes place:

Physical Access: The first step that the attacker has to take is to physically get into the compound of the organization that is being targeted. This is usually done by loitering around employees or visitors, following people through secured doors, for instance, by ‘tailgating’ them.
Observing Authentication: The attacker then sees an authorized user log in to a limited resource. This could be observing a person entering a password or PIN code, using a security badge or an access card, or logging into a computer.

Phishing Emails

Phishing emails are one of the most common types of cybercrimes. These messages are usually designed to imitate other entities that are trustworthy, and as such, the victims are tricked into providing the required information. In the context of tailgating in cyber security, phishing emails can be considered as the digital counterpart of the same, which deceive users into letting the attacker into their data.

Now, let’s look at three specific examples of phishing emails:Now, let’s look at three specific examples of phishing emails:

Tech Support Phishing Emails: The scammers will try to make the victims fear that they need some technical support services. They may mimic Microsoft or Best Buy’s Geek Squad and claim that there is something wrong with your device.
Tax Refund Scam Emails: The scammers impersonate the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and say they are going to help with problems concerning your tax refund or any other tax issue. The IRS does not contact people via email to request information or to issue tax refunds, thus, such messages are usually phishing scams.
Suspicious Activity Notices: Most email accounts associated with online accounts have features that alert you when there is unusual activity on your account. This is where scammers come in, they take advantage of this and send fake alerts to try to get your login information.

To counter this, one needs to be up to date with the latest tactics in use by the phishers. Sources such as the Cloudflare’s 2023 Phishing Threats Report and the Proofpoint’s 2024 State of the Phish Report are useful. Note that the knowledge of what is tailgating in cyber security entails the recognition of its cyber equivalents such as phishing emails.

USB Drop Attack

A USB drop attack is a type of cyber attack in which a USB stick is left behind with the intention of being found and plugged into a computer. The idea is that the person of interest will just casually pick it up and connect it to the computer. This is a real-life example of what is tailgating in cyber security which is a serious threat to organizations.

The first half of 2023 saw a tripling of the number of attacks that used infected USB drives. A research showed that 48% of the drives that were dropped were not only connected but also had one or more files in use. This high conversion rate proves that the threat of USB drop attacks is real.

Two specific examples of USB-based cyber espionage have been reported in the literature. The first one is the SOGU Malware Infection which employs USB flash drives to install the SOGU malware with the aim of acquiring information from the host. This campaign can be associated with TEMP. Hex, a China linked cyber espionage actor, is a threat to many industries across the globe.

The second campaign, SNOWYDRIVE Malware Infection, is delivered through USB flash drives and installs the SNOWYDRIVE malware. Once it is loaded it opens up a backdoor on the host system and thus the attackers can remotely execute system commands. This campaign has been directed to the oil and gas companies in the Asia region.

Impersonation

Impersonation is one of the most used strategies in tailgating cyber security threats. In this case, the attacker impersonates an authorized person and may wear a uniform or a badge that resembles those of the organization’s employees. This method takes advantage of the fact that there are no proper identification checks or security measures in place.

A clear example of impersonation in tailgating is the case of Marriott hotel group data breach that was realized in 2018. Hackers were able to penetrate the company’s system through a process known as phishing where they imitated authorized personnel. This breach leaked the information of up to 500 million guests.

Another instance, in the case of Equifax, the hackers employed the tailgating technique to penetrate the organization’s network. This resulted in the loss of important information such as the SSN, DOB, and address among other things. It impacted more than 147 million people.

How to Prevent Tailgating

To prevent tailgating in cyber security is not a one way process. It entails the use of technical solutions, policies, and awareness campaigns. Let me explain it in more detail.

First of all, two-factor authentication is a great feature. It enhances the security by making it difficult for the intruders to get through. Password changes also prevent the formation of tailgating opportunities as there are fewer chances of using the same password for a long time.

Secondly, organizations should ensure that there are strong access control measures in place. This entails the use of physical control measures such as turnstiles which only allow one person at a time to pass through.

Thirdly, periodic training on the security measures is important. Social engineering attacks such as tailgating should be known by employees in order to avoid falling victims to such attacks.

How Designveloper can help

At Designveloper, we know that cybersecurity is a critical issue and that one of the threats is tailgating. We have a team of cybersecurity personnel who are conversant with the identification and prevention of such threats.

Penetration Testing: Our team performs a detailed penetration testing process that includes web application, mobile application, network, and social engineering penetration testing. We review applications and networks to determine potential areas of risk and provide recommendations for mitigation of such risks.
Security Training: We offer tailored training sessions to ensure that your team is well prepared to deal with cyber threats. Our training courses are secure coding, security culture, incident handling, and threat and risk assessment.
Threat Modeling: We are always prepared for the worst and this is why we engage in proper threat modeling during software development. We arrange the software architecture in a manner of a diagram, describe the possible threats, provide suggestions for the security solutions, and evaluate the efficiency of the applied countermeasures.
Security Consultation: We provide crucial security services such as compliance and regulatory, security architecture assessment, and secure software development. We help organizations to meet legal requirements and compliance with the requirements of various industries including HIPAA, PCI DSS, ISO/IEC 27001 and others.

As a company, we have gained a lot of knowledge in this field and will be glad to assist you in increasing the cybersecurity of your organization and preventing the occurrence of tailgating. We do not only aim at establishing the possible threats but also at offering the right measures and procedures to avoid such occurrences in the future.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it is vital to know what tailgating in cyber security means in today’s world. This is a very basic but very powerful strategy that is employed by the attackers to infiltrate into the protected zones or systems. The statistics of the recent past show a rising trend in such cases, which underlines the importance of vigilance and strong protection measures.

Many reports show that tailgating is usually ignored in the security measures that are put in place. This oversight can result in massive data leaks, which has been seen in several actual cases. Thus, it is crucial to include the prevention of tailgating in the security measures and frameworks. Some of the measures that can be taken are: enforcing strict access control, raising awareness among employees on the dangers of tailgating and using anti-tailgating systems.