Why is the diamond a sign of love and devotion? Why do baseball players always step over the first base line? The history behind these questions are examples of how small manipulations can make changes in the behavior of millions. Kati Rodzon uses her background in behavioral science to demonstrate how easy it is to social engineer your own behavior as well as those around you. Want your dog to fetch you a beer? How about get your friend to think that he has to stand up and point his remote at the wall before the TV will turn on? Done. Changing behavior is easier that you might think. Get ready to learn some history and social engineer your way into anything.
Katrina Rodzon has spent the last 9 years studying ways to modify human behavior and is the lead behavioral scientist at MAD Security in her role of Manager of Security Behavior Design. From learning about the power of social pressure on groups to analyzing the ability of contingencies – reinforcement and punishment – to change behavior, Kati has spent the better part of a decade learning how humans work and now applies that to security awareness. When she is not measuring an organizations culture and making a customized behavior modification plan, she helps with everything from curriculum development to creating effective social engineering tools and testing scenarios for MAD’s penetration testing team.