As American society becomes more digitized, cybercriminals are becoming more prevalent in our everyday lives, increasing the amount of social engineering attacks we encounter each day. New data from NordVPN examined the prevalence of social engineering, and the awareness around it (or lack thereof), revealing that 84% of Americans have experienced some form of social engineering, with phishing as the most commonly encountered.

The report addresses social engineering’s most common forms, and steps online users and IT administrators can take to protect themselves from these attacks. When it comes to the different types of social engineering, it’s clear phishing is the most common. For example, out of the 84% that encountered these scams, almost half (48%) reported suspicious emails with links and attachments and/or asking for their personal information.