Tailgating and Piggybacking

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Tailgating is the act of entering a secure area without authorization by following closely behind the person that has been allowed to open the door or checkpoint.

• instead of using the credentials, badge, or key normally needed to enter
• the authorized person may let you in intentionally or accidentally
• happens in most places that use technical access controls

Piggybacking is a similar situation but means that the attacker enters a secure area with an employee’s permission.

• e.g.,
  • impersonating a cleaning crew or delivery driver to get in
  • saying “I’ve forgotten my badge/card”
  • having an insider threat actor allow access without recording it in entry log