Email Security Blog

Changing User Behavior to Prevent Phishing Attacks

There is a certain type of panic that sets in the second you click on a malicious link. Your heart begins to race as you quickly try to back your way out of trouble. And then you wait. If nothing disastrous happens immediately, you might tell yourself it’s probably not as bad as you think. Still, you curse yourself for falling for a phishing email.

In 2021 the FBI received about 2,300 cybersecurity complaints per day.1 Considering the most commonly used tactic by cybercriminals is email phishing, which adds up to a great deal of panic. How would you feel if you set a large-scale phishing disaster into motion? It’s not a far-fetched possibility.

Consider the following:

  • More than 95% of all cybersecurity incidents involve human error.2
  • 85% of data breaches involve a human element.3
  • In 2021, phishing attacks represented 38.2% of all reported cybercrimes.1

So how can you help curb the human error factor in phishing attacks? If you think the answer is simulated phishing tests, you’re incorrect. In fact, a recent phishing experiment conducted for fifteen months between 2019 and 2020 uncovered some startling news: the simulated phishing tests used by many large companies are actually making things much worse.4 56,000 employees participated in the experiment and 32% clicked on at least one phish. A shocking 73.13% clicked on simulated phishing emails, with 25.43% of test participants taking at least one dangerous action – such as providing credentials. A summary of the experiment’s conclusions states “that embedded training during simulated phishing exercises, as commonly deployed in the industry today, does not make employees more resilient to phishing, but instead, it can have unexpected side effects that can make employees even more susceptible to phishing.”5

It's time to stop relying on simulations and take the steps necessary to change the behavior. INKY is an intuitive, easy-to-manage behavioral email security platform that makes it all possible. INKY blocks impersonators and coaches your people to stay on guard for email threats – all without disrupting productivity. Whether threats are inbound, outbound, or internal, INKY keeps you a step ahead of cybercriminals and phishers with dynamic, interactive banners that make users stop and think before they click. With INKY on your side, you catch everything.

In case you’re thinking that a third-party email security platform is something you’ll consider more seriously in the future, remember that prevention is a much wiser choice than recovery. In 2021 companies in the U.S. lost about $2.4 billion to Business Email Compromise (BEC) attacks, more than $49 million to ransomware attacks, and nearly $152 million was lost to corporate data breaches. Can you afford to be caught off-guard?

Cloud-based and cost-effective, INKY takes the responsibility of recognizing phishing scams away from employees and IT departments. INKY integrates seamlessly with any email platform and works in the office and on any mobile device. IT departments love INKY’s reporting features, which allow administrators to review phishing threats that have been identified and see how employees are handling them. If you want things to change around your office, start by changing your email security tactics. Request an INKY demonstration today.

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INKY is an award-winning, behavioral email security platform that blocks phishing threats, prevents data leaks, and coaches users to make smart decisions. Like a cybersecurity coach, INKY signals suspicious behaviors with interactive email banners that guide users to take safe action on any device or email client. IT teams don’t face the burden of filtering every email themselves or maintaining multiple systems. Through powerful technology and intuitive user engagement, INKY keeps phishers out for good. Learn why so many companies trust the security of their email to INKY. Request an online demonstration today.

 

1Source: https://www.ic3.gov/Media/PDF/AnnualReport/2021_IC3Report.pdf

2Source: https://www.verizon.com/business/resources/reports/dbir/2021/masters-guide/summary-of-findings/

3Source: https://i.crn.com/sites/default/files/ckfinderimages/userfiles/images/crn/custom/IBMSecurityServices2014.PDF

4Source: https://www.securityweek.com/research-simulated-phishing-tests-make-organizations-less-secure

5Source: https://arxiv.org/pdf/2112.07498.pdf

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