About the Social Engineering and Deepfake Defense category
What belongs in this category
The Social Engineering and Deepfake Defense category covers products that stop attackers who trick people rather than break into systems. Typical entries detect cloned or AI-generated voices on calls, fake video in meetings, impersonation of executives and help desk staff, and scam messages on chat and social media. They also verify who someone is before a payment, password reset or other sensitive request goes ahead.
This category protects an organization's own staff and processes; scams and fraud against its customers fit Fraud Prevention. Products that only protect the mailbox fit Email Security, while a product that stops impersonation across email and other channels starts here and can also enter Email Security. Identity document checks at sign-up belong in Identity Verification (IDV). Social media security, once a category of its own, can now enter here or Digital Risk Protection (DRP).
Related categories to enter
Each category is judged separately, so you can enter a product in every category that matches what it does, with a separate nomination for each. Tailor each nomination to that category's focus. Entering several related categories gives the product more than one chance to be recognized.
How entries are judged
An independent jury of security practitioners, analysts and CISOs scores each nomination on leadership, innovation and impact. Each nomination competes in its category against organizations of similar size and region, so a mid-sized firm is not ranked against a global enterprise. Your entry package, any sponsorship and public votes do not affect the jury's scores.
Strong entries in this category show:
- Leadership — the people and channels protected: calls, meetings and messages covered, organizations using it, and high-risk users such as executives, finance teams and help desks.
- Innovation — a manipulation problem solved in a new way, such as detecting cloned voices as a call happens, verifying a caller's identity without slowing staff down, or catching new deepfake techniques.
- Impact — results for customers: impersonation attempts stopped, fraudulent payments or resets prevented, detection accuracy, time to verify cut. Give figures from customers.
The jury awards Gold, Silver or Bronze, or a Finalist badge, and results are published on this site and announced to the 600,000+ member Cybersecurity Insiders community. Every approved nomination also enters the separate Community Choice award, decided by public votes.
How to enter
A vendor can enter its own product or service, and a PR agency can enter it on a client's behalf. The nomination form has a confidential field for detail that is shared with the judges and not published, such as customer names, deployment figures or roadmap. Deadlines, pricing and entry steps are on the How it Works page.
