Security Awareness Training and Phishing Simulation
One annual slideshow does not change what people click in March. Security awareness training works when it is short, frequent and tied to the attacks your staff are receiving this month: callback phishing, fake MFA prompts, a text message from the 'owner'. NetSys runs the program for you, measures it, and hands you the report when the insurance renewal asks.
The short answer
Security awareness training teaches staff to recognize and report phishing, social engineering and fraud attempts, then measures whether they do. A working program has four parts: simulated phishing sent on a schedule, short lessons assigned when someone clicks, a one-button way to report suspicious mail, and reporting that shows the trend. NetSys runs all four for small and mid-sized businesses as part of its managed agreement, using the lures attackers currently favor, including voice callbacks and SMS. Results feed cyber-insurance applications and compliance reviews. Delivered remotely nationwide, with on-site sessions across our coverage areas.
Phishing changed shape. The misspelled email still arrives, but the messages that work now are a voicemail asking you to call about a subscription renewal, a text from a number claiming to be the owner, or a real-looking Microsoft sign-in page behind a QR code. Training built around last decade's examples teaches people to spot last decade's attack.
Our program mirrors what our monitoring sees hitting client inboxes. Each month's simulation uses a current lure. Anyone who clicks gets a two-minute lesson on that specific lure immediately, while the memory is fresh. Anyone who reports gets acknowledged. Over a year the reporting rate rises and the click rate falls, and those two lines are what an underwriter or auditor wants to see.
Monthly Cadence, Measured Honestly
We start with a baseline campaign nobody is warned about, so the first number is real. Then the cadence is monthly: a simulation drawn from current attacks, a short lesson for those who fall for it, and a quarterly module for everyone on a broader topic such as payment fraud or handling client data. The report-phish button in Outlook routes suspicious mail to our team, who reply to the person and pull the message from other inboxes if it is real. New hires enter the program during onboarding. Leadership sees the trend quarterly, and the annual summary is formatted for insurance and compliance questionnaires.
What the Training Program Includes
Simulated Phishing
Lures that look like this month's real attacks.
- Monthly email campaigns, with SMS and voice callback scenarios for the roles that receive them
- Templates based on what reaches client inboxes now: fake MFA prompts, vendor bank-detail changes, shared-file notices
- Targeted campaigns for finance, executives and anyone who approves payments
- Unannounced baseline so the starting point is honest
Training Content
Short, specific and timed to the mistake.
- Two-minute lessons delivered the moment someone clicks a simulation
- Quarterly modules on payment fraud, data handling, remote work and voice-clone impersonation
- Onboarding module for every new hire, tracked to completion
- Role-specific content for finance, HR and executive assistants
Reporting Suspicious Mail
Make the safe action the easy action.
- Report-phish button added to Outlook on desktop, web and mobile
- Reported messages reviewed by NetSys engineers, with a reply to the reporter
- Confirmed phishing removed from every inbox that received it
- Reporting rate tracked as the primary measure of program health
Reporting for Insurers and Auditors
The numbers the renewal form asks for.
- Click rate and report rate per campaign, per department, over time
- Completion records for onboarding and quarterly modules
- Annual summary formatted for cyber-insurance, HIPAA, FTC Safeguards and NY DFS reviews
- Included in the NetSys managed agreement; available standalone for businesses with internal IT
Why Businesses Choose NetSys for Security Awareness Training
Let The Netsys Group assess and help you resolve your exposure. Call 845-203-3914 for your complimentary risk assessment consultation today!
- Simulations built from what our monitoring sees hitting inboxes now, including callback phishing and smishing
- Lessons delivered at the moment of the click, when they change behavior
- A report button that reaches engineers who act, so staff see that reporting matters
- Results formatted for cyber-insurance renewals and compliance reviews without extra work
- Runs alongside email defense and MFA, so training covers what technical controls miss
- Month to month, like every NetSys agreement
Where we deliver Security Awareness & Phishing Training
Security Awareness & Phishing Training in New York City · Security Awareness & Phishing Training in Nassau County, NY · Security Awareness & Phishing Training in Westchester County · Security Awareness & Phishing Training in New Jersey · Security Awareness & Phishing Training in Fairfield County — and remotely wherever your systems run. See all locations and service areas.
Security Awareness & Phishing Training FAQs
What is security awareness training?
Security awareness training is a recurring program that teaches employees to recognize phishing, social engineering and fraud, then measures whether they act on it. Done well it combines simulated attacks, short lessons triggered by mistakes, an easy way to report suspicious messages, and reporting that shows the trend. Done badly it is an annual video with a quiz. NetSys runs the former for its managed clients.
How often should employees receive security awareness training?
Monthly simulations with a short lesson attached, plus a broader quarterly module and an onboarding session for new hires. Frequency matters more than length. A two-minute lesson delivered right after someone clicks a simulated lure changes behavior; an hour-long annual course mostly changes the completion report. Insurers increasingly ask for the cadence, and 'annual' is becoming a weaker answer on the form.
Do cyber insurance policies require security awareness training?
Most applications and renewals now ask whether employees receive security awareness training and phishing simulation, and some carriers ask how often. A documented monthly program with click and report rates answers the question with evidence rather than a checkbox. Our cyber insurance readiness service maps the rest of the questionnaire to controls in the same way.
Will simulated phishing upset our staff?
Not when it is framed as practice rather than a trap. We tell the whole company the program exists, keep lessons short and free of blame, acknowledge people who report, and never publish individual names in the reports leadership sees. The people who click most are usually the busiest, and a targeted lesson helps them more than a scolding.
How much does security awareness training cost?
It is included in the all-inclusive month-to-month NetSys managed agreement. For businesses with in-house IT that want the training program alone, we quote a standalone monthly figure based on headcount after a short call. There is no setup project to fund: the report button, the baseline campaign and the first lesson set are part of onboarding.
Does training cover text message and phone phishing?
Yes. Smishing (SMS lures) and callback phishing, where an email or voicemail asks the target to phone a number, are both simulated and both taught, because they bypass email filters entirely. Finance staff and executive assistants receive these scenarios more often, since those are the roles attackers aim them at. Our posts on callback phishing and smishing describe the current versions.
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