deception tactics
Strategies for fooling
Deception tactics are methods used to mislead others—creating false impressions, concealing truth, or manipulating perception.
The term appears in military contexts (feints, camouflage, disinformation), psychology (gaslighting, misdirection), and everyday discourse about manipulation: The company's deception tactics included burying bad news in footnotes.
The phrase implies deliberate strategy rather than casual dishonesty.
- gaslightingManipulation causing self-doubt
- phishingFraudulent credential harvesting
- bluffingDeceiving about one's position
- confidence trickFraud exploiting victim's trust
- disinformationIntentional deceptive falsehoods
reverse psychology · white lies · double agents · misdirection · decoys · steganography · honeypot · deepfakes · trojan horse · wolf in sheep's clothing · mimicry · false flag · hidden agenda · psyops · pretexting · cover story · feint · astroturfing
deception tacticstransparency
State of being see-through
full disclosure · candor · openness · truth-telling · forthrightness
deception tacticsstraight talk
Honest, direct communication
plain dealing · bluntness · straight shooting · calling a spade a spade · cutting to the chase