ReliaQuest has published a report on the cybercriminal recruitment ecosystem, finding that fluent English speakers with social engineering skills are highly sought-after.
“Among the most in-demand skills is English-speaking social engineering, with job posts more than doubling from 2024 to 2025,” the researchers write. “Recruiters account for 87% of these postings, indicating strong demand, likely fueled by the success of groups like ‘Scattered Spider’ in leveraging this skill for initial access attacks.”
The researchers note that deepfake technology can add another layer of sophistication to social engineering attacks. Accordingly, crooks are also looking to hire individuals with AI expertise
“Looking ahead, once deepfake technology enables adversaries to remove language barriers in real time, it will present an even greater threat,” ReliaQuest says. “Attackers could target organizations across multiple languages, significantly expanding their reach. What’s more, with recruitment for English-speaking social engineers already at an all-time high, real-time deepfake technology offers an alternative to traditional methods. As such, social engineering attacks will almost certainly become more prevalent.”
ReliaQuest also notes a surge of activity related to the newly popular ClickFix social engineering tactic, which tricks victims into running malicious commands on their computers.
“The cybercriminal job market is a key driver in accelerating the adoption of emerging attack techniques, as demonstrated by the rise of ClickFix malware execution. Between late 2024 and early 2025, ClickFix activity surged by an alarming 850%, with a 200% spike occurring within just one month of targeted recruitment posts appearing. This rapid escalation highlights how demand for specific expertise directly fuels the deployment of new methods, making it essential for organizations to monitor these shifts and proactively strengthen defenses.”
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