Using the Bystander Effect

The term bystander effect refers to the phenomenon in which the greater the number of people present, the less likely people are to help a person in distress.
- Darley, J. M. & Latané, B. (1969). Bystander “apathy.” American Scientist, 57, 244-268.

      The Bystander Effect, although a phenomenon, can have some practical use in Social Engineering. 


PLEASE NOTE: This effect will not happen every single time as there are good people in this world that are willing to help those in distress. We do not condone using this for illegal purposes, this post is only for information about psychological phenomenon. 

     Standard tests done by many psychologists involve the use of an injured victim laying in the middle of a busy side-walk. Passers-by simply ignore the injured person and continue walking no matter how much the person in distress is moaning. Occasionally, someone will confront the injured victim and ask if he or she needs any assistance. The number of people that actually help is very slim when compared to the number of people that simply continue walking.


     Most psychologists say this is because people are lazy, other psychologists say that its because no one else sees the distressed person as a priority, so it must not be that big of a deal. Others, including myself (even though I'm not a psychologist) say that they simply avoid the distressed person because they think the person could be pulling a con. However, keep all of these points in mind, as they could be useful for a Social Engineer. 


     Lets say someone gets pick-pocketed. They start to fuss, they make a big commotion, and they tell people to stop the pickpocket. Now lets say that you had a group of people just walk by the distressed person completely ignoring him. There is a high chance that everyone else around the distressed person would do absolutely nothing simply because no one else was doing anything. 


     In theory, a group of pick-pockets could go around and steal purses, wallets, sunglasses etc. in the most non-secretive way possible and they would be able to get away with it (so long as the victim doesn't start chasing after the pick-pocket). 


     A Social Engineer can use this effect in many ways to get away with certain crimes. The biggest factor is the number of people that the Social Engineer has with him. If there's a smaller number of people, the less likely it is that he will get away with his con. The larger the number of people, the easier it will be to get away with it. 


So ask yourself, if you saw someone in distress, would you help them? What if no one else was helping them, would you still help them, or would you just walk away?


Thanks for reading,
- Clocwork