Which social engineering tactic involves creating a fabricated excuse to gain physical access to a secure area?

The tactic referred to in the question is pretexting, and it involves creating a fabricated scenario or excuse to deceive individuals into giving access to restricted or secure areas. In this method, the perpetrator constructs a false identity or situation that seems legitimate enough for the target to believe and comply. For example, someone might pose as a maintenance worker needing to enter a secure building to fix a supposed issue.

This method relies heavily on psychological manipulation and the target's trust in the fabricated story. The goal is to gain physical access to a location without the proper authorization, which is a critical aspect of pretexting. It is important to differentiate this tactic from others; for instance, while impersonation also involves deceit, it is focused more on the act of pretending to be someone else without necessarily creating a specific scenario to facilitate access.