Cyber & AI Security · Internship Role
SOCIAL ENGINEERING RESEARCH
Study the manipulation tactics attackers use, such as pretexting, urgency and authority, and design ethical, consent-based phishing simulations that teach rather than shame.
SKILLS YOU'LL WALK AWAY WITH
Influence psychologyPretext analysisPhishing simulation (GoPhish)Ethics & consentResearch reporting
PROOF-OF-WORK TASKS8 TASKS
Start at Beginner and work up. Every task produces something real you can show: a report, a tool, a guide or a demo. Publish it on LinkedIn or GitHub as your proof of work.
B
Beginner
LEVEL 01
- 01Collect 15 real scam or phishing messages (from your inbox, family WhatsApp groups, or PhishTank). Remove personal data and label the tactic in each: urgency, authority, fear, greed or curiosity.
- 02Write a short explainer on Cialdini's 6 principles of influence, with one real scam example for each principle.
- 03Write a pretext breakdown of a famous social engineering incident (for example, the 2020 Twitter hack): who was targeted, what story was used, and why it worked.
I
Intermediate
LEVEL 02
- 01Set up GoPhish in a local lab and build a harmless simulation template whose landing page teaches rather than traps. Get written consent from every participant before any run.
- 02Design 5 phishing simulation templates at 3 difficulty levels for an Indian startup, each with a 'teachable moment' page explaining the red flags.
- 03Write a rules-of-engagement document for ethical phishing simulations covering consent, no shaming, no real credential capture, data handling, and who is told what.
A
Advanced
LEVEL 03
- 01Run a consent-based simulation with a willing group (a club or team). Measure click and report rates, and publish an anonymised report with training recommendations.
- 02Research vishing and deepfake voice scams. Build a threat brief with 5 real cases, the attack flow, and a verification protocol companies can adopt (callback rules, code words).
HAND-PICKED FREE RESOURCES6 RESOURCES
FREE TOOL
GoPhish
An open-source phishing simulation toolkit for authorised training.
VISIT RESOURCE
FREE TOOL
PhishTank
A community database of verified phishing sites to study safely.
VISIT RESOURCE
ARTICLE GUIDE
MITRE ATT&CK: Phishing (T1566)
How phishing is used in real intrusions, with detections and mitigations.
VISIT RESOURCE
ARTICLE GUIDE
Social-Engineer Framework
A structured breakdown of how social engineering attacks work.
VISIT RESOURCE
ARTICLE GUIDE
CERT-In Advisories
India's national CERT. Current scam and phishing advisories.
VISIT RESOURCE
ARTICLE GUIDE
Darknet Diaries (podcast)
True stories of hacks and scams. Good for learning how attacks unfold.
VISIT RESOURCE