It's the low-tech side of hacking that uses psychology rather than software to accomplish a system intrusion. The con artists who use social engineering to break in to systems often appeal to our trusting nature and tendency to want to be helpful. So, when the sincere sounding stranger phones to say he is working on a problem with the system and just needs your password to see if he has fixed the trouble you may be caught off guard. Another problem with social engineering is that the victims of such attacks are often embarrassed. So, attacks often go unreported even though spreading the news may help reduce the effectiveness of the attack and prevent someone else from becoming a victim.
Security experts recommend training and awareness.
If someone asks for a password or any other kind of sensitive information, proceed with caution. Ask for verification. Ask for identification. Ask for authorization. Report suspicious activity.