Does training against phishing solve the problem or does it just create a false sense of security?

In many organizations, reduced click-through rates in phishing campaigns is interpreted as a sign of security maturity.

But, this view creates a false sense of control by turning phishing into the primary and sometimes only indicator of human risk.

It is necessary to understand that awareness based on punctual tests and a logic of hit or miss, ignores the real context of people's work and the fragile processes that directly influence behavior.

With this, security is no longer a competence built over time and is treated only as a number in a report. The problem is that the most relevant incidents rarely start or end in an email.

Scams via WhatsApp, social engineering over the phone, abuse of trust between areas, and exploitation of operational failures are part of the reality of organizations.

Even with good results in phishing simulations, the risk is still present when the strategy does not evolve into a broader view of the human factor, so focusing only on phishing does not reduce the real risk, it only hides vulnerabilities.

Why doesn't focusing solely on phishing solve the problem?

People don't make decisions in a vacuum, they react to stimuli, pressures and rules. Without considering these factors, any security initiative tends to attack only the symptoms, not the actual causes of the risk.

This is because employees do not fail alone, this is largely due to the fact that they have:

• Environments with confusing processes;

• Excessive urgency;

• Multiple communication channels;

• Lack of clear guidance.

  
  

All these actions create the ideal conditions for exploitable errors by attackers and when the process encourages shortcuts or does not clearly define how to act in suspicious situations, unsafe behavior becomes a consequence.

Another critical point is how security is communicated, often the messages are generic, technical or disconnected from the reality of the business.

As a result, without understanding the practical impact of a risk, be it financial, operational, or reputational, employees tend to see security as something distant, bureaucratic, and unrelated to their activities.

This scenario results in a low understanding of risk in the day-to-day operation, so people even know rules, but do not know how to apply them in real situations, outside the script.

Therefore, recognizing risks, questioning atypical requests, and interrupting insecure flows requires more than information, it requires maturity. And security maturity is only built when behavior, context, and processes evolve together.

What really works besides phishing to reduce human risks?

Reducing human risks requires a change in approach, moving away from one-off campaigns and moving towards a continuous process of awareness. This is because exposure to risk does not happen on specific dates, and learning should not happen either. 

Effective programs treat security as a recurring practice, integrated into people's routines, reinforcing behaviors over time and following the evolution of the environment, threats, and the business itself.

Another decisive factor is education based on real-world and multi-channel scenarios. Attacks are not limited to email, and employee preparation cannot be limited to it either.

Therefore, content that explores WhatsApp, SMS, phone calls, and everyday situations makes learning closer to operational reality, because when people recognize the context, the response becomes conscious.

Finally, it is essential to integrate technology, processes, and people, supporting this strategy with metrics that indicate maturity and not just clicks.

After all, indicators such as response time, reporting capacity, recurrence of unsafe behaviors, and evolution by area offer a more accurate view of human risk.

In this way, measuring maturity allows for better decisions, correct prioritization, and, above all, a real reduction in the organization's exposure.

How to structure an effective strategy beyond phishing?

Building an effective human risk reduction strategy requires abandoning the limited vision of siloed campaigns and adopting a structured, continuous, and maturity-oriented model.

Going beyond phishing means understanding that risk is distributed in daily behaviors, processes, and decisions, influenced by context, pressure, and organizational culture. The strategy needs to reflect this complexity, connecting security to reality.

Assessment of maturity and human exposure to risk

The first step is to understand where the organization really is. Assessing security maturity goes beyond checking if there are formal training or policies.

It involves measuring behaviors, simulated incident responses, process adherence, and exposure across different channels. Without this diagnosis, any initiative runs the risk of attacking problems that are not a priority.

In this way, mapping human exposure to risk allows you to identify the most vulnerable areas, profiles, and situations, guiding strategic decisions.

This risk-based view replaces assumptions with evidence and helps direct efforts to where the potential impact is greatest, increasing the effectiveness of the program.

Audience segmentation and content personalization

Not all employees face the same risks, nor do they make decisions under the same conditions.

An effective strategy recognizes these differences and segments audiences according to role, level of access, operational context, and exposure to specific threats. Therefore, treating everyone the same dilutes the message and reduces the impact of awareness.

It is necessary to understand that the personalization of content makes communication more relevant and applicable, because when examples, scenarios, and guidelines reflect the reality of the public, security is no longer abstract and begins to make sense in everyday life.

These actions are essential in any awareness plan, as it increases engagement and strengthens safer behaviors consistently.

Evolution of the awareness program over time

Know that awareness programs cannot be static. As the organization grows, digitizes processes, and adopts new channels, so does human risk.

Therefore, an effective strategy predicts cycles of evolution, reviewing content, scenarios, and approaches as the level of maturity increases and new threats emerge.

This continuous evolution avoids user fatigue and keeps security relevant, so instead of repeating basic messages, the program delves deeper into topics, introduces new risks and encourages more critical decisions.

This is all important, as it accompanies the transformation of the business and strengthens the safety culture over time.

Leadership and governance engagement

Without leadership involvement, the awareness strategy tends to be perceived as an isolated initiative from the security area.

That is why the participation of the C-level is essential,  after all, when leaders participate, reinforce messages and take responsibility, security gains legitimacy by being part of organizational priorities.

This is because governance ensures that the strategy is sustainable, measurable, and aligned with business objectives.

Therefore, defining roles, responsibilities, indicators, and decision-making processes allows the reduction of human risk to stop depending on one-off actions and become an institutional commitment.

How does PhishX help organizations move beyond phishing?

PhishX helps organizations go beyond phishing, by treating the employee as the strategic link, the approach starts from understanding behaviors, contexts and processes that influence decisions on a daily basis.

This allows us to see where the risk really forms and act strategically, connecting awareness, culture, and security maturity.

Through simulations, PhishX exposes organizations to scenarios that reflect real threats faced in the corporate environment.

These simulations are combined with educational content contextualized to the reality of each company, making learning more relevant and applicable and demonstrating that campaigns must go beyond phishing.

The result is practical awareness, which prepares people to recognize risks in concrete situations, and not just in predictable tests.

In addition, PhishX offers clear, actionable metrics that go beyond click-through rates, supporting board decisions with a true view of security maturity.

Indicators of behavior, response, and evolution over time allow you to monitor the reduction in exposure to human risk on an ongoing basis.

As a result, organizations stop reacting to isolated incidents and start evolving their security strategy in a structured and sustainable way. Want to know how? Contact our experts and learn more.

We need to go beyond phishing tests.