Everyone can be fooled. The goal is to build good habits, not to expose people. Everyone — including experienced IT staff — can fall for targeted phishing; the goal is to reduce click rates year over year. Ten fewer clicks in 2026 than in 2025 can represent a major improvement and a measurable reduction in risk.
Start with simple exercises that include clear warning signs to build confidence. Conduct these simple simulations regularly – they create awareness, and those who click on them should be prioritized for additional training. When a small group keeps clicking repeatedly, that’s where education needs to start. These users often highlight where communication, awareness, or process gaps still exist. This is exactly where things tend to go wrong in real situations.
Gradually increase the realism by removing the obvious errors and using internal context. Follow up repeated clicks with quick, friendly 1:1 guidance and short micro-training, not sanctions.
There’s no real value in designing a simulation that fools 99% of employees. People might learn something from it, but the result is usually frustration and low motivation. Most users can detect even highly convincing phishing attempts – if they get just a couple of minutes of proper guidance first.
A practical example that works well in training sessions:
An employee receives an email that appears to come from a logistics supplier. One wrong click opens a form for “account verification.” It looks harmless, but behind the form a small script installs a remote access tool. Within two hours, the attacker has reused the same credentials to reach a server containing customer information. It all started with one click – not with bad intent, just a moment of inattention.
The point isn’t to scare anyone, but to show how little it takes – and how much safer things become when emails are reported instead of clicked.
To help people spot them in practice, here are some common warning signs:
• Unknown or mismatched sender: The email address doesn’t match the company name or domain.
• Suspicious link preview: The destination domain is different from what the text shows.
• Requests for passwords or codes: No legitimate service will ever ask for credentials by email.
• Urgent tone or threats: Messages pushing immediate action often aim to trigger panic.
• Unexpected or suspicious attachments: Files you didn’t ask for, especially with names like “urgent_invoice.doc” or “security_update.zip.”
• Strange or incomplete signature: Missing name, title, or contact info can signal a fake sender.
• Unusual time of day: Emails sent late at night, during weekends, or holidays can be suspicious.
• Unfamiliar tone or wording: The writing style doesn’t match how the person usually communicates.
• Generic greeting: “Dear user” or “Hello colleague” instead of your actual name.
• Inconsistent branding: Logos, colors, or formatting that look slightly off.
• Email marked as “external” but looks internal: A trick often used to bypass trust filters.
• Unusual requests: Asking for gift cards, wire transfers, or sensitive internal data.
Spotting just one of these warning signs early can prevent a full-scale incident.
Phishing awareness is part of Zero Trust in practice — always verify, even if the sender looks familiar, and make reporting part of everyday security hygiene.
Building awareness isn’t about perfection — it’s about progress. Every report instead of a click makes the organization stronger and more resilient.