Cyber Awareness Training
Insider risks, both malicious and unintentional, account for nearly 30% of cyber security incidents.
As such, changing the cyber security culture of your business is one of the most underrated and underinvested capabilities available to us in protecting ourselves from cyber attacks.
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What is Cyber Awareness Training?
Cyber awareness training refers to an educational program designed to teach people associated with your organisation how to identify, prevent, and respond to potential cyber threats. This type of training covers essential topics like phishing awareness, secure data handling, password management, reporting incidents and safe browsing habits.
Cyber awareness training programs usually cover employees only but for some more regulated and mature sectors, these programs can be extended to contractors and third parties too.
Many reports highlight the significance of such programs. For instance, 82% of breaches in 2024 involved human elements, such as social engineering or misusing access credentials, according to the Verizon 2024 Data Breach Investigations Report. This statistic underscores the importance of maintaining awareness of evolving cyber threats.
What's Included?
Training Needs Analysis
We begin by assessing your organisation’s specific risks and requirements, creating a bespoke training plan to target key vulnerabilities.
Interactive Learning
We provide you access to a blend of videos, quizzes and scenario-based tasks, ensuring staff remain engaged and can easily absorb the material.
Phishing Simulations
We run realistic mock exercises, helping participants recognise and respond to suspicious messages or calls in real-world conditions.
Reporting Guidance
We show individuals how to report issues quickly, minimising the impact of breaches and fostering a culture of swift action.
Progress Tracking
We track completion rates, quiz scores and simulated phishing outcomes, giving you clear insights into the success of the training.
Regular Refreshers
Threats evolve rapidly – we offer ongoing refresher sessions and updated modules to ensure your workforce stays prepared.
Challenges Addressed by Cyber Awareness Training
Human Vulnerabilities
Humans are unpredictable and easily manipulated, especially if they haven’t had the right training. Your employees can be the weakest link in the chain and that’s why the vast majority of cyber attacks target individuals in some manner.
Sophisticated Attacks
The frequency and sophistication of human-based cyber attacks is increasing. Training that up skills staff on the latest attack vectors (e.g. AI-powered deepfake video scams) are essential for organisations to protect themselves.
Compliance Requirements
In heavily regulated sectors with strict regulations, it’s often explicitly required to have a continuous cyber awareness training program to abide by laws such as the DPA (UK), GDPR (EU) or HIPAA (US).
Measuring Cultural Change
It can be tough to gauge how well employees grasp and apply cyber security practices. Without the right metrics, it’s hard to tell if training is effective or if staff are truly ready to handle cyber threats.
Human Vulnerabilities
Humans are unpredictable and easily manipulated, especially if they haven’t had the right training. Your employees can be the weakest link in the chain and that’s why the vast majority of cyber attacks target individuals in some manner.
Sophisticated Attacks
The frequency and sophistication of human-based cyber attacks is increasing. Training that up skills staff on the latest attack vectors (e.g. AI-powered deepfake video scams) are essential for organisations to protect themselves.
Compliance Requirements
In heavily regulated sectors with strict regulations, it’s often explicitly required to have a continuous cyber awareness training program to abide by laws such as the DPA (UK), GDPR (EU) or HIPAA (US).
Measuring Cultural Change
It can be tough to gauge how well employees grasp and apply cyber security practices. Without the right metrics, it’s hard to tell if training is effective or if staff are truly ready to handle cyber threats.
What Our Clients Say
Benefits of Cyber Awareness Training
Through continuous learning, interactive scenarios and role-specific instruction, we help ensure that your employees are well-prepared to handle cyber threats effectively.
Fewer Incidents
Training employees to recognise and respond to cyber threats can significantly lower the chances of expensive data breaches. A recent report from IBM highlights that organisations with cyber awareness programs saved an average of $1.49 million in breach costs compared to those lacking such programs.
Stronger Culture
Training builds a culture where cyber security is integral to everyday work. It helps employees follow security policies and contribute to a safer digital environment. When done correctly, the culture can slowly be shifted from cyber security being viewed as predominantly ‘policing’, more towards it ‘enabling’ business activities.
Staff Feel Supported
Being the victim of a scam, inadvertently losing company money or causing a data breach at work can be emotionally distressing for the individuals involved. Training and awareness activities not only protects employees’ well-being but also safeguards the company’s IT assets and data.
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Case Study: UK Insurance Firm
Client Challenge
A small but fast-growing UK insurance firm experienced a significant rise in phishing attacks and social engineering attempts, leading to compromised accounts and financial losses.
The client recognised a critical need to enhance their employees’ understanding of cyber threats and cultivate a culture of vigilance.
Our Approach
To tackle this, we implemented a Cyber Training and Awareness Programme, designed to garner long-term behavioural change from staff and to start improving resilience against human-based cyber threats. Our approach included:
- Cyber Cultural Change Expert: Delivered strategic oversight, identifying key areas of risk and ensuring the programme aligned with business objectives.
- Role-Specific Training: Developed and conducted engaging, scenario-based training sessions for high-risk roles such as software engineers and executives.
- Quarterly Phishing Campaigns: Conducted realistic phishing simulations to gauge the organisation’s susceptibility to attacks and reinforce learning.
- Face-to-Face Workshops: Hosted regular workshops focusing on the latest threats, using real-world examples to make the training relatable.
- Gamified eLearning: Sourced and implemented fun, gamified e-learning courses to keep employees engaged and encourage ongoing participation.
Value Delivered
Reduced Incidents
The number of successful phishing attacks decreased by 72% within six months.
Enhanced Awareness
Staff demonstrated improved recognition of cyber threats, leading to faster reporting and mitigation of incidents.
Cultural Change
A proactive security culture was cultivated, with employees taking ownership of their role in protecting the organisation.
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Who Needs Cyber Awareness Training?
- Small to Medium-Sized Businesses (SMBs): SMBs often lack the budget to invest in high-end security solutions but still need to protect against cyber threats. Cyber awareness training provides them with a cost-effective way to reduce the risk of internal security breaches.
- Organisations With Regulatory Compliance Requirements: Industries such as finance, healthcare, and education are often required to conduct regular security training for employees. Cyber awareness training ensures compliance with regulations such as GDPR and HIPAA.
- Growing Companies With Expanding Teams: Companies undergoing rapid growth can benefit from consistent and scalable security training to keep new employees informed and security conscious as the organisation evolves.
Who Doesn’t Need Cyber Awareness Training?
Almost everyone, including CISOs, cyber security professionals and executives, would benefit from cyber awareness training. However, budgets constraints can often get in the way of implementing a control to its fullest extent and so there are a few user groups who you might be able to exclude if this is the case.
- External Contractors: Training for external contractors can often be left to be managed by their employers. If contractors handle IT resources or sensitive data, you may want to include them in your own training as you cannot guarantee the quality and extent of their own.
- Offline Roles: Employees who do not use IT systems or sensitive paper-based information may not need cyber awareness training.
Our Approach
At CyPro, we follow a structured and data-driven approach to deliver cyber awareness training. This ensures that the training is relevant, engaging and impactful for all levels of your organisation.
Tailored Training Programs
We design custom training programs that address your industry-specific risks and business requirements. Whether it’s phishing prevention or GDPR compliance, our training is aligned with the challenges your employees are most likely to encounter.
Interactive Learning
Our training combines interactive learning modules with real-life scenarios, ensuring that employees can actively apply the lessons learned. Through quizzes, simulations and role-playing exercises, participants are more engaged and retain critical information.
Phishing Simulations
Phishing attacks are one of the most common cyber threats. As part of our program, we conduct phishing simulations to test employee readiness and improve their ability to spot suspicious emails, links, or requests.
Compliance-Driven Modules
Our training includes modules specifically designed to meet industry regulations like GDPR, HIPAA, and ISO 27001. We ensure that your staff understands the compliance requirements relevant to your industry, minimizing the risk of costly breaches.
Reporting and Analytics
We offer comprehensive and transparent reports regarding your employees’ performance in training. This helps track engagement, pinpoints areas that require improvement and makes sure your team is current with standards for security.
Remote Learning Options
With more employees working from home, we can offer flexible and easily accessible online training sessions. Our e-training modules have been designed to be just as engaging and effective as face-to-face training sessions.
Secure your business.
Elevate your security, accelerate your growth. We take care of cyber security for high-growth companies, at every stage of their journey.
Get in Touch
Secure your business.
Elevate your security, accelerate your growth. We take care of cyber security for high-growth companies, at every stage of their journey.
Get in TouchYour Team
Rob McBride
Rob is a Founding Partner at CyPro and a highly experienced CISO. Beginning his career with a successful tenure at Deloitte, Rob has since amassed a wealth of experience, notably serving as a cyber security advisor to the UK government and spearheading cloud security transformations for several global banks.
At CyPro, Rob leads the managed service business line, working extensively across multiple sectors including telecommunications, technology, higher education, travel, and retail. He is passionate about equipping small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) with robust cyber security strategies to fuel their growth.
Additional Consultants
Jamie is the former Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) at Allianz Holdings, where he led cyber security strategy, operations, and delivery across Allianz UK’s financial services and insurance businesses, including Allianz Commercial, Petplan, and LV.
He provides cyber security advisory services to start-ups and high-growth businesses. In this capacity, he serves as an active board member at the Cyber Defence Alliance, a cyber advisor to CVC Capital Partners, and a member of several start-up advisory boards. He is also an established keynote speaker and event moderator.
He offers services such as vCISO, fractional CISO, board advisory, cyber advisory, keynote speaking, and event moderation, delivered on a modular basis to meet client needs.
Paul is an experienced digital transformation leader with a strong background in technology strategy, cyber security, and change management. His career spans multiple industries, where he has successfully driven large-scale IT initiatives and security enhancements. With a focus on aligning technology solutions with business objectives, Paul has been pivotal in helping organisations navigate complex digital challenges and improve operational efficiency. His leadership in cyber security strategy and risk management has made him a trusted advisor in the field, dedicated to building resilient and secure technological environments.
Matthew is a Knowledge Management Specialist with extensive experience in information security and risk management. He is dedicated to fostering a culture of knowledge sharing and collaboration, ensuring that best practices in cyber security are effectively communicated and implemented across organisations. With a strong background in strategic and operational disciplines, Matthew excels at developing frameworks that facilitate the capture, storage and dissemination of critical knowledge related to cyber security threats and solutions.
His strategic vision and commitment to continuous improvement empower clients to stay ahead of evolving threats while maximising their cyber security investments.
Comparison: Cyber Awareness Training vs Cyber Resilience
When considering cyber awareness training versus cyber resilience, it’s important to understand their distinct roles in strengthening an organisation’s security posture.
Cyber Awareness Training
- Purpose: Aims to educate employees about cyber security threats, best practices, and how to recognise and mitigate risks such as phishing, social engineering, and data breaches. Helps reduce human error, which is one of the leading causes of cyber incidents.
- Scope: Training sessions, simulations, workshops, and e-learning modules covering topics such as password security, email safety, and incident response protocols.
- Cost: Generally a cost-effective initiative, with options ranging from basic e-learning modules to more comprehensive, organisation-wide training programmes.
- Who Is This Best For? Businesses looking to strengthen their security culture by reducing the risk of human-related security breaches, particularly those in industries handling sensitive data.
Cyber Resilience
- Purpose: Focuses on an organisation’s ability to prepare for, respond to, and recover from cyber incidents, minimising disruption and financial impact.
- Scope: A broader framework that includes not only awareness training but also risk assessments, incident response planning, disaster recovery, and business continuity strategies.
- Cost: Typically more resource-intensive than awareness training alone, as it requires investment in security controls, response teams, and ongoing resilience testing.
- Who Is This Best For? Organisations needing a comprehensive approach to cyber security that goes beyond awareness and includes proactive response and recovery strategies.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is cyber awareness training?
Cyber Awareness Training is an educational programme designed to equip employees with the knowledge and skills needed to recognise and respond to cyber threats effectively.
Since human error is one of the leading causes of security breaches, training employees on best practices significantly reduces the risk of cyber attacks. The training covers essential topics such as phishing prevention, password security, safe email usage, device security, data privacy, and social engineering tactics used by cyber criminals.
Without adequate training, employees may unknowingly become the weakest link in an organisation’s security posture, clicking on malicious links, using weak passwords, or mishandling sensitive data.
A well-structured Cyber Awareness Training programme fosters a security-conscious culture within an organisation, ensuring that employees remain vigilant against cyber threats. By embedding security awareness into the company’s daily operations, businesses can reduce their exposure to cyber risks, enhance their overall resilience, and maintain compliance with industry regulations such as GDPR and ISO 27001, which mandate employee cyber security education.
- Why is cyber awareness training important for employees?
Cyber Awareness Training is crucial because employees are often the first line of defence against cyber threats.
Cyber criminals use sophisticated techniques to manipulate employees into granting access to sensitive information, whether through phishing attacks, social engineering scams, or credential theft. Untrained employees are more likely to fall victim to these tactics, potentially causing severe financial and reputational damage to the organisation.
By providing structured training, organisations empower their workforce to detect suspicious activities, avoid risky behaviours, and respond appropriately to potential threats. Beyond reducing security risks, Cyber Awareness Training helps businesses stay compliant with regulatory requirements that mandate security education for employees. Regulations such as GDPR and HIPPA require organisations to implement training programmes that ensure employees understand their role in protecting sensitive information.
Investing in Cyber Awareness Training ultimately minimises financial losses, reputational damage, and operational disruptions caused by cyber attacks, while also reinforcing a culture of shared security responsibility.
- How often should cyber awareness training be conducted?
Cyber threats are constantly evolving, and so should an organisation’s training approach. A one-time session is not enough to ensure employees retain security best practices. Many organisations opt for ongoing cyber awareness training, incorporating quarterly or biannual refresher courses, phishing simulations, and real-world scenario exercises to reinforce learning.
It is recommended that training sessions be held at least annually, with additional refresher modules and phishing simulations conducted throughout the year to maintain a high level of awareness.
Cyber criminals continuously adapt their methods, creating more sophisticated and convincing attack strategies. To stay ahead, organisations must ensure that their employees are regularly updated on new threat trends and response techniques. During onboarding, new employees should receive foundational cyber security training, while existing staff should be given periodic updates to address emerging threats.
Our Cyber Awareness Training programmes are tailored to an organisation’s needs, ensuring that employees receive continuous and engaging learning opportunities to strengthen their security awareness.
- How can the effectiveness of cyber awareness training be measured?
Measuring the success of Cyber Awareness Training is essential to ensure that employees are absorbing and applying their knowledge effectively. Organisations can track key metrics that indicate changes in employee behaviour and improvements in security awareness.
One of the most effective ways to measure training success is through phishing simulation tests. By monitoring the percentage of employees who fall for simulated phishing attacks before and after training, organisations can determine whether employees are applying what they’ve learned. Additionally, tracking training completion rates ensures that all staff members participate in mandatory security education. Post-training assessments, such as quizzes and interactive exercises, help evaluate employees’ knowledge retention, highlighting areas where further training may be required.
Another valuable metric is the rate at which employees report suspicious activities. A rise in security incident reporting often indicates a positive shift in awareness and vigilance. Similarly, a reduction in security incidents related to human error, such as credential theft or accidental data exposure, suggests that training is having a tangible impact.
Our Cyber Awareness Training programmes include reporting and analytics, allowing organisations to monitor progress and adjust their training strategies accordingly to maintain strong security practices.
- What topics are typically covered in cyber awareness training?
A comprehensive Cyber Awareness Training programme should cover a range of topics that address both common and emerging cyber threats. The training should be designed to not only educate employees on the dangers of cyber attacks but also provide practical steps they can take to protect themselves and the organisation.
Key areas of training include phishing and social engineering awareness, where employees learn to recognise deceptive tactics used by cyber criminals and how to identify suspicious emails, messages, and phone calls. Password security and authentication best practices help employees understand the importance of strong, unique passwords and the necessity of multi-factor authentication (MFA) to secure their accounts.
Safe email and internet usage training provides guidance on identifying malicious links, avoiding unsafe browsing habits, and properly handling attachments to prevent malware infections. Device security and endpoint protection focus on securing laptops, mobile devices, and removable storage from cyber threats.
Data protection and privacy regulations ensure that employees understand the importance of securing sensitive information and complying with laws such as GDPR. Remote work security has also become a critical component, educating employees on best practices for securing home networks, avoiding public Wi-Fi risks, and using VPNs for secure access to company resources.
Incident response procedures teach employees how to report suspicious activities and respond effectively to potential security incidents, ensuring a swift organisational response in the event of a breach. By tailoring training content to the needs of different teams, businesses can ensure that all employees receive relevant and practical cyber security education that aligns with their roles.
- Can cyber awareness training be customised for different industries?
Yes, Cyber Awareness Training can and should be tailored to fit the specific security challenges of different industries. Healthcare organisations, for example, must comply with strict data protection regulations such as GDPR and HIPAA, while financial institutions face a higher risk of phishing attacks and fraud attempts. Similarly, remote-first companies may need more emphasis on endpoint security and secure remote access best practices.
Our Cyber Awareness Training programmes are fully customisable, ensuring that businesses receive industry-specific training that aligns with their regulatory requirements and security concerns. Whether an organisation operates in finance, healthcare, retail, government, or another sector, we deliver relevant training content that directly addresses their unique cyber security challenges.
- How can my organisation implement a cyber awareness training programme?
Implementing an effective Cyber Awareness Training programme starts with assessing the organisation’s current security awareness levels and identifying areas that need improvement. We work closely with businesses to develop a custom training plan that fits their needs, whether through in-person workshops, online training modules, phishing simulations, or interactive learning experiences.
Our training programmes can be delivered as one-time sessions, ongoing training cycles, or continuous learning initiatives that evolve alongside emerging threats. We also provide reporting and analytics to measure training effectiveness and ensure that employees remain engaged and well-informed.
To get started, organisations can reach out to our team for a consultation, and we will tailor a Cyber Awareness Training programme that enhances their overall security posture and strengthens their defences against cyber threats.
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